


A Fated Bullet

by akir4



Category: No Fandom
Genre: Assassins & Hitmen, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Forbidden Love, Gangs, Italian Mafia, Rival Relationship, Russian Mafia, Torture, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-09-11
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:21:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 20
Words: 25,828
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25753510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/akir4/pseuds/akir4
Summary: Lilith and Ryo are lead executives from opposing groups. They somehow fell for each other. No part of them or their relationship is pure. One day, the opposing groups suddenly decide to team up temporarily. Resisting the urges and keeping each other a secret isn't an easy thing to do. This story follows the progress of their relationship.THIS STORY CONTAINS TRIGGERING CONTENT. DO NOT READ IF EASILY TRIGGERED.VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
Relationships: Original Female Character/Original Male Character
Kudos: 1





	1. Clash

**Author's Note:**

> Hey !!  
> Thanks for checking out my work, it means a lot.  
> Also, I'm not the best writer so excuse dumb mistakes lolol 
> 
> This story will contain some heavy/triggering content. Descriptions of sexual acts, violence and injuries, among others, will be included. So if you’re sensitive to this stuff I DO NOT recommend reading. I wont be adding warnings before the above-mentioned moments  
> so this is your only warning !!
> 
> Other than that, I hope you enjoy the story

[...]

“....and that concludes my presentation.”  
Faint applause echoed through the plain meeting room. I turned to pack my laptop up and take my seat.  
As soon as I neared my hand to the laptop, the big window behind me shattered. A bullet came through, scraping the side of my cheek.  
I slammed the laptop down.  
“Not now you dickwad..!” I muttered to myself.  
“Should we call security?”  
“No..its fine. He’s after me, not you. You'll be fine.”  
As I reassured my colleagues, I loaded my two pistols.  
“He’s gonna pay for this” I thought to myself.

I approached the window, scanning the air.  
No one’s there.  
“Fuckin’ pussy...”  
I shattered the remainder of the window with my leg and jumped down. My coat was fluttering behind me, wind blew through my white hair.  
Good thing there isn't a lot of people here.

I landed on a truck parked nearby. I looked around, yet still no traces of him.  
...Is what I thought.

Out of nowhere, a gunfire opened. I jumped behind the truck for cover.  
“Come out you coward!!” I yelled out.  
The gunfire ceased.  
Heavy footsteps emitted from the top of the truck.  
I looked up.  
“Found you.”  
I shot a few bullets at him, which he skillfully dodged. He then jumped down to face me.

He got into my face, that disgusting grin painted across his face. I kept my stony glare. Neither of us dared to break eye contact.  
At this point I could feel his soft breath against my lips.  
He leaned in closer, brushing his lips against mine. I rolled my eyes, but didn’t pull back.  
Instead I cocked my pistol and placed it against his jaw.  
He still wasn’t pulling back. Instead, he deepened the kiss by sliding his tongue into my mouth.

I slowly pulled back the trigger, yet he still wasn’t stopping. As I was about to blow his brains out, he bit my lip, making me drop the gun.  
He took the moment of my vulnerability to pin my arms above my head. I gave up on resisting at this point.

“Giving up so soon?”  
“Its not like that. I'm just tired.”  
He pulled away and suddenly got serious.  
“Are you alright?”  
“Wh...Oh...um..yeah, I guess. Just a long day at work. That's all.”  
“Well...I know a way to make you feel less tired.”  
“Oh really?” I teased him.  
He grabbed my hand and dragged me somewhere down the street.

He lead me to his car and opened the backseat door for me. I rolled my eyes but entered anyway.  
As soon as I did, he shoved me down and locked the doors.  
He hovered on top if me, kissing me relentlessly. He was so damn good at it.  
He trailed the kisses onto my collarbone leaving marks everywhere. He unbuttoned my shirt and exposed my bra. He kissed, bit and nibbled every piece of my newly exposed skin. He unclasped my bra and used one hand to play with my breast, and the other to tease my womanhood.

His hand wondered underneath my skirt. He traced his finger against my damp stockings.  
He slowly -maddeningly- took them off.  
He then unbuckled his pants.  
What happened afterwards is obvious.

[A few hours later...]

I woke up snuggled against Ryo in his car. The sky was already dark.  
“Shit..!”  
I got up and started to frantically put my clothes back on, waking him up along the way.  
“Hnmn....whats wrong..?” He asked while rubbing his eyes.  
“Oh nothing. Its just dark outside and I haven't finished ANYTHING I was supposed to.”  
“Shit...I'm sorry. Its not your fault. Its mine...I got to careless and...”  
He wrapped his arm around my shoulders.  
“It’ll be fine. We’re working together tomorrow anyway.”  
“...you’re right. I still can’t believe you managed to make our organizations collaborate.”

[Next Day]

Angels of Wrath and The Demigods collaborating huh...  
Who would’ve thought that the two biggest rivaling crime groups in the country would join forces?

What in the hell is happening?


	2. Collaboration

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The big meeting is today. What in the hell is going on when two opposing organisations have to work together?

I got up and headed to the bathroom.

This is the only morning where I actually tried to look good for work. I usually half-ass my hair and makeup, but today was different. A huge meeting is happening and I'm representing the Demigods. Also Ryo will be there, which makes this that much more exiting. 

I put on my favorite suit, the one I've been keeping for a special occasion. I checked myself out in the mirror. Damn I look good. I actually like how I look for once. I put my shoes on and left the apartment. 

The meeting was going to be held at our building, which made me that much more nervous. I'm usually good with live speaking, so this overwhelming nervousness really caught me off guard. 

Downtown always has a lot of traffic. Great, now I'm gonna be late too. What am I supposed to do now? I can't be late. Not today. Oh, right. I can always call her.

[One phone call later...]

Not a minute after I hung up, the cars started moving again. Freya is a godsend. I need to give her a bonus or something. Finally, enough cars moved so that I can step on it. Ill see a ticket on my front door or something when I get back, but its worth it.  
I finally got to the building. I'm 5 minutes early? Perfect.

I climbed up to the conference room on the top floor. Thankfully the door was already open, so I didn't have to go through *that*.  
The moment I entered the room, his eyes were on me. I could see the pink blush that he was trying so desperately to hide paint his face. I smiled to myself. This is exactly the confidence boost I needed.  
I sat into my assigned seat and prepared the materials.

Any minute now...

[*click*]

The sound of the door closing echoed through the now dead silent room.  
The two bosses entered the room.  
Aria of The Demigods and Lucifer of Angels of Wrath.  
Everyone got up from their seats. We stayed standing until the two of them took their seats.  
The bosses of the two biggest crime groups in the city coexisting and sitting in one room. Insane.

"Most of you are probably confused as why we're all gathered here, but I'll explain." Aria got up and stood next to the big screen.  
"There is a bigger threat in our city right now than each other. We need to put our rivalry aside for now, as this city is more important. I believe we will be able to put our differences aside and look at the bigger picture."  
Soft murmurs could be heard throughout the room. A bigger threat than each other? Is that even possible?  
"...as I was saying, we have to work together. Now onto the threat I was talking about previously. There have been numerous reports of crimes of all variety all throughout the city. This has not been committed by either of our organisations. We questioned gangs around the city and they don't know anything either. The most worrisome is the fact that our own have been targeted."

Everyone immediately tensed up.

"As of now three members of The Demigods have been killed, and two of AoW. I hope you all know this is a declaration of war. Everyone in the city knows not to target us. Which leads me to suspect a third party, a.k.a an outsider organisation."

"Well what are we going to do?"  
"As of now, nothing-"  
"That's bullshit!" I cut her off.  
"You cant just pretend its not an issue! Our people are dying. Who knows who's next. Why did you even drag everyone here if you're not gonna do anything? If we don't fight back we're gonna let them go the easy way out. We, along with AoW are powerful enough to defeat whoever we need to, you said it yourself! How can you just not do anything?!"

The room was dead silent. No one dared to say anything. Even the fact that I talked back to Aria shocked everyone.  
We held eye contact neither of us blinking. 

"Come on, say something. Defend your actions."  
"That's enough."  
I heard Lucifer's deep voice behind me.  
"Shes right, Aria. You cant let people die."  
"But-"  
"No buts. I want to listen to what she has to say." He gestured to me.  
I stood in front of everyone, nervous as hell.  
His eyes met mine. giving me a reassuring look.

"As I said previously, we cannot let our people die. Together, we can beat whoever is targeting us. I think they're targeting us on purpose. Which means they have a motive. I believe that motive is key to solving the problem."  
"Great. The AoW will work on figuring out the motive. I propose for The Demigods to work on strategies and plan everything out. With our help of course. I'd like to assign miss..uh"  
"Its Lilith."  
"Right, I'd like to assign miss Lilith the main role of strategy planing and everything else. If Aria agrees, of course."  
"Sure, whatever." Looks like she's still salty about earlier.  
"Perfect. If anyone has any questions, feel free to contact us or Lilith. Be careful. You're free to go."

Everyone started to disperse. A sigh of relief escaped my mouth.  
"I hope you know why I gave you this role." I heard Lucifer behind me.  
"I'm afraid not, sir."  
"Two reasons. First, I took a liking to you during the meeting. Second, to spite Aria. Also, just Lucifer is fine." I tried to stifle a laugh. This guy is so petty.  
"I'm grateful for the position."  
"Also, I hope you know I'm expecting a lot. Do not disappoint me." With that he left the room. Well that's reassuring. I packed my stuff and left the room.

As soon as I did, I felt someone grab me by the wrist and pull me aside. The familiar scent filled my senses.  
"Thank the gods its you." I dropped my head onto his chest. He ran his fingers through my hair, making me feel even more at home.  
"You did great, Lilith."  
"mm...Thanks Ryo."  
We stayed close for a while. His heartbeat calmed me down.  
"Thank you, Ryo." I smiled softly at him. That same blush painted his face again. I couldn't help but laugh.  
"What is it?"  
"You're cute when you blush."


	3. Freya

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Freya brought in a huge lead.

The building was more hectic than usual.

Both familiar and unfamiliar faces moved through the hallways. I was on the phone constantly, collecting new information and debunking old info. It was more stressful than usual but nothing I cant manage. My hands were full of papers, so my vision was partially blocked. My walking speed didn't help either, since I almost ran into 5 people in the last 10 minutes. 

"Oh Lilith! I finally found you. Nathan called you down into the communications & information* division. He said its important." With that, the assistant walked past me deeper into the hallway.  
Nathan..? What does he want?   
I turned around and went back to the elevators. As I pressed the button with the number 5 engraved in it, a light blue hue surrounded the button, and I started descending lower. A quiet 'ding' echoed before the doors slid open. I walked out and down the small hallway. Not long after, I reached the big room where the C&I* division was stationed. The room was dark, light emitting only from the numerous screens inside. As I looked around, I saw a nervous Nathan pacing back and forth. He snapped back into reality when he spotted me near the door. He quickly walked over and pulled me aside.

"Nathan, whats wrong?"  
"They-They got Freya."  
"What?" I felt a shiver go down my spine.  
"They killed Freya. One of her colleagues found her dead this morning."  
"...why? Why her?"   
"I don't know. We're still investigating the circumstances around her death but we currently have nothing. Its like she dropped dead. It makes no sense."  
"For fucks sake...Report to me immediately if you find something."  
"Of course."

I left the room in a hurry. I couldn't let anyone see me like this. Vulnerable and shit.  
I locked myself in the bathroom. I was so pissed. How could I let anyone else die? After what I said..After calling out Aria.. I couldn't save a colleague. Its all my fault.  
I yelled out to the empty bathroom. Staring at the reflection in the mirror, it made me hate what looked back at me even more. I couldn't bare it anymore. I broke the mirror with my fist. The glass shattered everywhere, and my hand was bleeding. Great.  
There should be a first-aid kit somewhere in here... And I was right. There was an unused first-aid kit in the bathroom closet.   
I poured rubbing alcohol on the wound, which just made it burn even more.

"Shit..!"

I somehow managed to bandage my hand up. Hopefully no one will ask anything.  
I left the bathroom with a broken mirror and bloody sink and went back to the elevator. I was back in the same hallway as before, finally heading to my office. I closed the door behind me and plopped into my chair with a heavy sigh. I looked to the pile of papers stacked on my desk with annoyance. I really didn't think this through huh?

[*Knock* *Knock*]

Who in the fuck is it now? I reluctantly got out of my chair and dragged myself to the door.   
"What do you-- Ryo! I'm so glad its you." I dragged him by his hand into my office. I locked the door behind me.   
"You have no idea how much I wanted to see you." I gave him a tight hug, longing to hear his heartbeat.   
"What for? Did something happen?" I nodded.  
"They killed Freya."  
"Shit..I'm so sorry." He rubbed my back reassuringly.   
"They got two of ours today." I pulled back out of shock. He shakily pulled me back against his chest. His heart was racing.   
"I'm so, so sorry Ryo. We're gonna find whoever did this. I promise."  
"Thank you." 

We held each other for what felt like an eternity. The warm embrace helped us feel better, even if it was for just a moment. 

"We should uh- We should go back to work."  
"Oh, right." I pulled away.  
"If you need any help, call me."  
"Yeah, thanks."  
"Also why were you here in the first place?"  
"Oh, right! I almost forgot. I came to show you some new info."  
He plugged a flash drive into my computer. A file popped up on the screen. Ryo clicked on the only video in the file. What popped up was security camera feed, filming a very familiar person. 

Freya.

"What the fuck is this?"   
"Just watch."  
I averted my eyes back onto the screen. The video played what seemed like an ordinary morning for Freya. She was walking around the apartment, until she dropped onto the floor, motionless. I felt my fists subconsciously clench. The video stayed the same for a few seconds, until a masked person appeared on the screen. They were wearing a black ski mask with some weird red symbol on the forehead. They then bent over Freya's body, shoving their finger inside her throat. Quickly thereafter they fled the scene. The video finally ended. Unsettling silence filled my office.   
"Ryo..what in the fuck is this? Where did you get this video?"  
"She had a few hidden cameras around her apartment. They were all searched thoroughly and this is the only one that had something on it. I also have this." He clicked onto a file named "autopsy results". A few pictures and a PDF file popped up.  
"They finished her autopsy surprisingly quickly. The cause of death was carbon monoxide poisoning. Which was also found in every other victim. Also, you remember the mask they were wearing? The same black fibers were found on all victims. We cant say 100% its from the mask but it cant be a coincidence. And one last thing. Remember the part where they shoved their finger in her throat? They found a small piece of paper in her esophagus."  
He clicked on a different picture. A small scroll of paper popped up on the screen. It said: "24/9/ 12:00 AM at Monad Bridge. Leaders only. We're expecting you."  
"What even..? Did you tell Aria and Lucifer?"  
"I told Lucifer, but I couldn't get a hold of Aria. Could you please do that for me?"  
"Of course."  
"The investigation is still ongoing so whenever something comes up Ill report to you."  
"Thank you, Ryo."  
"Of course."  
I copied the file onto my computer and stood up to let Ryo out. But before I did, I gave Ryo a soft kiss.  
"At the usual place tonight?"  
"Sure."  
He pulled away and left my office. I followed him out soon after, heading to Arias office. I knocked on the door no one dares to come close to. 

"Come in." 

I stepped inside and closed the door behind me.   
"Oh. Its you. Do you need anything?"  
"Not necessarily. I'm here to report a huge lead."  
"You mean Freya's case?"  
"Did you see the autopsy results then?"  
"I didn't bother. Its your job anyway."  
"Yes, but I have something that concerns you." I showed her the picture of the message.   
"Hm..interesting. Ill have to discus this with Lucifer."  
"Are you gonna go?"  
"Im not sure. Depends on what Lucifer thinks. And of course I wont go alone. You'll come with me." Of course I will.  
"The 24th is in two days, so make sure to tell me what are we doing before then."  
"Of course I will. Who do you take me as?" We both forced a laugh.  
"Ill be leaving now."  
"Of course. Be careful Lilith."  
"You too."

I finally left that shit hole.  
I got my stuff and left the building. The usual place, huh..?


	4. The usual place

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You meet Ryo at your usual place. The place where it all started.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains detailed description of sexual intercourse. Read at your own discretion.

I walked out into the windy evening, street lights illuminating the side walk ahead. I pulled my coat closer in hopes of making myself feel warmer. I checked my phone, where I found a notification.  
>>New Message (Ryo): im waiting for you at the front door :))  
That dork. I smiled to myself as I slid my phone back into my pocket. I finally reached my car. I started the engine and drove deeper into the city. I passed a number of buildings, all of them a little too familiar. I cant let this city fall apart. Not again.  
I parked down the road from our spot. Every step made me more excited. I arrived at the front door of the Reneu Pub. The pub where we met years ago.

[5 years ago...]

I walked into my favorite pub. I was completely worn out from work. I sat on an empty bar stool and ordered my usual.

"Whisky? That's my favorite too."

I turned around. Next to me sat an attractive guy. He looked my age. He had dark hair with light tips and the most enchanting opal eyes. He had sickly pale skin and rosy lips. He looked skinny but something about him told me he wasn't weak in the slightest. He wore a black coat with a gray vest and dark pants. He looked tired yet completely put together. 

"My name is Ryo."  
"That's a pretty name."  
"Thanks." My smile seemed to catch his eye, since he couldn't take them off of it. I wasn't any better either. I kept staring at his eyes. The staring session was broken by the bartender bringing me my whisky. "Well, aren't you gonna tell me your name?" "...How about you give me one?" He examined my face, and quickly came to a decision. "I think Lilith would suit you." "Lilith, huh..." We quickly got talking. Its all a blur to be honest but one thing led to another and he asked me to come home with him. And me having nothing better to do, complied.  
After we arrived to his apartment, he poured us wine and we went out onto his balcony. It had a perfect view of the stars. We laid down and stared into the night sky. At one point I felt his finger brush against mine, so I took his hand into mine. He turned to look at me with a confused look on his face. I looked back at him with a smile. He took my face into his hands and pulled me into a kiss. My face was bright pink. He quickly pulled away out of embarrassment. I laughed and pulled him back in. 

"You're so cute" I whispered against the kiss. I rolled on top of him, our lips never parting. I teased him by trailing my hand along his body, feeling every curve and muscle. I slid my hand underneath his vest, slowly tracing everywhere. After, I went lower. I felt the growing bulge in his pants. He gasped and I took the opportunity to slide my tongue in. We made out until I suggested we take this inside.  
He effortlessly picked me up, which surprised me, since I'm both tall and relatively muscular. He took me into his bedroom and laid me on the bed. He kissed me again, this time he was completely in control.

His tongue licked every crevice of my mouth, engraving his taste into my brain. As he did, he used his hands to take off my clothes. He scattered everything till I was just in underwear. He trailed his kisses lower, leaving marks on my collarbone and chest. What was weird is that he was so gentle. Even though he did leave hickeys, he held me and kissed me like I was made of glass. Like I was gonna break any second. I both liked it and disliked it. He still does that sometimes. Like I'll wither away.  
I unclasped my bra and stopped for a second to admire my body. He quickly got back to work. He kissed every bit of newly exposed skin. He did it in that weird gentle way. Like he was worshiping me. I still don't know how I feel about that. He slid his hands down and under my damp underwear. He traced his hand along my clitoris, making me quiver beneath him. He slowly slid one finger in...and then another one. Once again he was both gentle and rough at the same time it was driving me insane. As he thrusted his fingers inside me, he used his thumb to rub my clitoris. He was so damn skilled. 

"R-Ryo..I-I'm gonna-" He shut me up by pressing his lips against mine. He pulled his fingers out at the last minute, leaving me a complete mess.  
He took off his pants and underwear. And I got scared a little bit to be honest. He slowly inserted himself into me, allowing me to adjust. I nodded for him to continue. He held my hips, sinking his fingers into my ass. He slowly picked up the pace. It hurt like hell but I never wanted it to stop. I came not long after, but he was not done yet. He continued thrusting into me, his pace getting faster and faster. We both hit our climaxes at the same time. He pulled his penis out and shoved it into my mouth. I cleaned every drop of cum. I continued sucking his penis until he came into my mouth again. 

"I'll be right back" He walked into his closet. He came back out not long after with a rope in his hands. He tied it around my entire body, and tied the end to the bed post. He gagged me with a cloth. Here started round two.

He started off with my breasts. He sucked onto my nipples, drawing out muffled moans out of my mouth. He then went lower. He spread my legs open and went between them. He skillfully licked and gently sucked onto my clitoris. He slowly licked around the wet entrance. Him finally sticking his tongue in made me scream.  
This went on for hours.  
The next morning I woke up before him and left him a note proposing to meet again at the same place. I left the note on his dinner table and left for work.  
Little did I know we were going to meet much sooner than that.

At work I was assigned to retrieve some stolen weapons. As I walked into the warehouse, I noticed another group of people. Since I lead the group, I walked up to them. I had my hands in the air and mark on display. They lowered their weapons and called over someone. Who walked up in front of me was none other than Ryo. We both tried to act like we didn't know each other. We both knew what romantic relationships between the groups meant. From that point forward we were sworn enemies. At least at work. 

[Present day]

I snapped back into reality. I noticed for how long I was waiting for Ryo. I looked around. A gunshot echoed from behind me.

"Found you"

I pulled out the two pistols I always use and ran off to find him. I got up to the rooftop of a building.  
"Took you long enough." I swirled around, my fingers tight around the trigger. There he was. Sitting on the edge of the building. We both had guns pointed at each other. I was seconds away from pulling the trigger but the ringing of my phone interrupted me. We both had confused looks on our faces. The guns were lowered and I answered the phone.  
"Hello?"  
"Lilith! They broke in I'm h-" The call suddenly ended.  
"We have to go back right now."


	5. Break In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone broke into the main building.

"Lilith? What is going on?"  
"I have no time to explain. Follow me."  
We ran back down and onto the streets. We were running until I saw a motorcycle on the side. The rider was just about to get on it. I took a sharp turn towards the bike. I pushed the stranger off the bike and took their keys.  
"I'm sorry. Its an emergency." Ryo sat behind me and we sped back to the building. I was running red lights, swerving around other cars and whatnot. Ryo was holding on for dear life. I haven't driven this irresponsibly in a while so I kinda surprised myself too. We were in front of the building in no time. As soon as we stepped off the bike, I heard the faint sound of the emergency alarm.  
"Call backup, I'm going in."  
"Be careful."  
"You too."  
I ran inside. The first thing I checked was the reception desk. The camera feed was displayed with a large notification. It said: "Security breach in hall B4" Wait B4? That's where-  
I grabbed the emergency weapons from the safe behind the desk. I then headed for B4. How did they know the C&I division was there? There is nothing else in that hall. I finally reached the 4th floor and ran down to the room. The deeper I went, the more havoc I saw. Broken glass, dirt, papers and worst of all...bodies. Dead bodies. Everywhere. The blaring alarm just made the situation worse. The closer I went to the room the louder the gunshots and screams became. 

I burst through the door and quickly started shooting. There were at least five or six of them. They were wearing all white with that same symbol on their backs. The symbol Freyas murderer had on his mask. It just made me squeeze the trigger tighter. Eventually they all dropped dead. The room became dead silent. Except for the alarm of course. The wind from the broken windows blew through my hair.  
"Is anyone else still alive?" The room was silent. Until I heard a faint groan. With the gun still tight in my hand, I moved closer to the sound. I turned around behind a table, where I saw Nathan heavily injured. He was clenching his arm and was bleeding form multiple places. The look on his face told me everything.  
"Nathan! Nathan, it's me! Lilith!"  
"Go....go save Maria. Shes two tables down....shes still alive. She has to be."  
"But Nathan, you're-"  
"Forget about me, save her. Go!"  
I got back up. The moment I did I felt something scratch the back of my skull. I stiffened up. I heard heavy breathing behind me.  
"You're going to-"  
A loud gunshot sounded behind me. I felt that same thing scratch me again, this time going downwards. I turned around to see Ryo in the hallway, with security behind him.  
"Oh thank the Gods."  
The security safely escorted the rest of the survivors.

"Where there any other breaches?"  
"Yes, up in C5. Near your office."  
I felt my heart ache. This isn't gonna end nicely.  
"A gunfight is going on currently and-"  
"Why didn't you tell me earlier? Let's go!"  
I dragged him up to the 5th floor. We immediately heard gunshots. We ran closer to the sound. I peered behind the corner where I saw more of those people in white fighting security.  
"Ryo?"  
"Yes?"  
"Don't hold back."  
"I wasn't planning to."  
We jumped out from behind the corner and started shooting the intruders. There were so many of them. The two of us were shooting back to back. These people were definitely professionally trained.  
"Shit!"  
"Whats wrong?"  
"I'm out of bullets."  
"You act like you don't have two hunting knives around your belt."  
I rolled my eyes but I genuinely did forget I had those. I pulled them out and went closer to the intruders. My speed helped with slashing their throats easier.  
"I didn't use these in a while."  
Once I killed a few I hid behind a desk. There I saw a terrified secretary hugging her knees.  
"Hey, its going to be okay. Just stay there and be quiet."  
The blood on my hands and face probably didn't help. Good thing she recognized me.  
I went back out onto the scene where I saw Ryo struggling to handle the remaining intruders. 

"I could use some help here!"  
"Hmm.. I'll think about it."  
I went over to him while I was reloading my gun.  
The two of us took down the remaining intruders. As we did, the alarm came to a halt, making the hall quiet again.  
"It's clear now!"  
Slowly, survivors started coming out of their hiding spots. The cleaning crew came with the paramedics. Aria and Lucifer also came.

"What happened here?!" She had a shocked expression on her face. I've never actually seen her so shocked about something.  
"Those motherfuckers broke into the building."  
"How?"  
"We still don't know. The investigation team is still taking a look at the scene."  
"For fucks sake...Go back to the paramedic station. You're bleeding."  
"Right." I went back to the small set-up paramedics station near the entrance of the building. They cleaned and bandaged up my wounds. I had more than I thought I did. I ended up with a bandaged arm, leg and forehead.  
"You look like a mummy." He laughed.  
"Like you look any better." We both laughed. More so at each other than anything else.  
"Should we go back?"  
"..Yeah."  
We sneaked out back to the pub. 

We ordered the usual and sat down to our usual spots. The both of us let out a heavy sigh. Could this evening get any worse?  
Of course it could.

The bartender gave us our drinks. I grabbed my glass and almost dropped it. The sound of my phone ringing scared the shit out of me.  
"What now?" I placed my glass back on the bar and got my phone from the pocked. The moment I answered I heard Aria yell at me.  
"Where the fuck are you?! This is an important investigation and you're just wandering who knows where? Come back here this instant!" She hung up. I think the whole pub heard her.  
I downed my drink in one go and left the pub with Ryo.

We went back to the building again where I found Aria pacing back and forth.  
"Whats wrong?"  
"Whats wrong? WHATS WRONG?! They stole everything! Everything we had on them! Everything about Freya's case, and all the new info we got was deleted!"  
It all felt like it was crumbling down before me. Only for a moment.  
"I don't think that's the case." I felt a familiar hand on my back.  
"I have a flash drive right here with every piece of information on it. I asked the C&I team to send everything to me as soon they got it so I can report directly to miss Lilith. I knew she was busy and if it were to be sent by e-mail she'd never see it. That's why I took it upon myself to put the info on a USB drive and give it to her. That way I knew for a fact she saw everything. So miss Aria, don't worry. Everything is right here."  
He held a flash drive in his hand. The weight suddenly lifted off my shoulders.  
Aria was speechless.  
"I-uh. Thank you! Thank you so much! I'll make sure you get a raise." The mood quickly lifted. I dragged Ryo by his hand and led him behind the building. I slapped him with my full strength.  
"This is for not telling me sooner."  
I leaned in and gave him a kiss.  
"And this is for being a fucking smart ass. No, but seriously. Thank you. You saved us." His expression was priceless. I hugged him tightly.  
"Say something."  
"I love you."


	6. I love you..?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The blurry night is filled with emotions and tears.
> 
> !!This chapter contains possibly triggering content. There is mention of detailed sexual intercourse, self harm and alcohol abuse. Read at your own discretion!!

"I love you."  
That sentence made my heart sting in a bittersweet way. I knew I loved him. But there is no place for love here. We both know it. So why...?  
"I love you so much that it hurts. Everything hurts. When you hug me, when you kiss me, when you talk to me, when you smile, when you laugh, when you walk by and your scent fills my senses, it all hurts. So much. But I love the pain. I'm addicted to it. I love you and everything about you."  
I tear rolled down my cheek. It stung. It hurt. Why Ryo? You know what is going to happen.  
"Look Ryo, I-"  
"You don't need to answer right now. Or ever. Just...just stay by my side. Don't push me away. Please."  
Do I lie to him and say I don't love him? Or do I confess now?  
"Ryo. Listen to me."  
He nodded.  
"I love you too. You can't imagine how much." A smile carved on his face "But-" That same smile quickly faded away. "But I don't want to loose my position over this. I wan't to continue hiding our relationship. For now, at least."  
He gave me a tight hug.  
"Of course, Lilith. As long as you're next to me, I don't care."  
We held each other for a moment. A moment forever engraved into our hearts.

"Lets go back." I regained my composure and went back to the scene. I flagged down Aria.  
"Any news?"  
"Not yet. They said they're gonna send everything by tomorrow. Oh and also since the building has to be renovated, I gave everyone a day off. Don't let your guard down though. Those people are still out here."  
"Of course."

I walked back to the motorcycle I stole earlier.  
"Did they give you a day off too?"  
"Yeah. By the way, do you need a ride home?"  
"Actually, what if I spend the night at your place?"  
"Oh really?" I smirked at him.

We drove on the motorcycle back to my car which was parked near the pub. We then rode the car back to my apartment. I live in a loft-style penthouse apartment on the 26th floor. Its a pretty fancy apartment, but I worked my ass off for it. 

As soon as I closed the door behind me, Ryo pinned me up against the door. He pressed his lips against mine, his tongue already inside. He didn't hold back. He never did. He picked me up and I wrapped my legs around his waist. He placed me on the kitchen counter and proceeded to take off my clothes. He unclasped my bra, letting my breasts plop down. His tongue was still inside my mouth as he played with my breasts. A few moans escaped my mouth, but were muffled by his lips on mine. He finally broke the kiss and trailed his lips lower onto my chest and his hands even lower between my legs. He kissed and bit all over my breasts and collarbone, all while his hand was teasing my clit through my pants. He unbuttoned my pants and pulled them down with my underwear. He spread my legs and thrusted inside. He quickly picked up the pace, making me weak. We both hit our climaxes at the same time.  
"Another round?"  
"Actually...I'm not feeling it tonight."  
"Oh..that's okay."  
I went past him to take a shower. I burned myself with the water for a good 20 minutes before putting on a robe and leaving the foggy bathroom. I walked out on in the hallway and to the fire exit. It was the only place where I could smoke without the whole apartment smelling like shit.  
I don't usually smoke. I only do when I'm stressed. Which I was. 

I heard the heavy door creak behind me. Ryo walked out onto the fire exit. The cold wind blew through his dark hair.  
"Don't go outside like that. You'll get sick."  
"I think that's the least of my problems right now."  
"Your health should always be your first priority."  
"Well it isn't. At least not right now." I lit another cigarette.  
"Relax. I'm just trying to look out for you."  
"I never asked you to. How the hell can I relax when half of the people I'm in charge of have been wiped out?!"  
"You think I don't know how you feel?"  
"You clearly don't know! You wouldn't be saying these things if you did. Pull your head out of your ass! Not everything revolves around you!"  
I fucked up. I could tell something snapped in there. His eyes gave it away. He tried to hide it, but failed.  
"Wait, that's not what I-"  
"No. I see how you feel." He walked back into the hall, leaving me outside.  
You idiot! How could you say that to him?! I'm so fucking dumb! I stormed back into my apartment and slammed the door. 

I then did something I would later heavily regret.

With bloody hands I collapsed onto my bed. I stared at the ceiling. It all became blurry.  
When I woke up I couldn't remember anything. I walked out of bed with a painful headache. My mind was still fuzzy. I bandaged up my hands from last night. I grabbed a bottle of gin and sat in the couch. 

That whole day was a blur. I only remember drinking, crying and sleeping. I hated myself for what happened the evening before. I couldn't muster up the courage to apologize to him.  
I am the shittiest person I know.


	7. We Need To Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ryo starts snapping at innocent people, and its on Lilith to talk some sense into him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains harsh language, mentions of self harm and self image issues. Possibly other triggering content. Read at your own discretion.

I spent my day off wallowing like a little bitch. It went by so fast. Its already time to go back to work. I half-assed my look more than usual. I was also more unmotivated than usual. That scene just kept replaying in my head. I couldn't get it to stop. I somehow dragged myself to my office. I couldn't let this show. No one can know what happened.

A knock on my office door made me jolt back into reality. A woman from a different division was standing in my doorway.  
"Um..are you Lilith Belasco?"  
"Yeah. Can I help you with something?"  
"Well um...how do I say this?"  
"Just spit it out."  
"Well a guy, I believe he's your co-worker, has been quite aggressive today. He'd snap at me and other at every little mistake, even if its a small noise."  
"Whats their name?"  
"He's from the other group. I believe his name was Ryo?" You've got to be fucking kidding me.  
"Lead me to him right now."

We went down to the second floor, hall D2 to be exact. I can't believe I've never been down here. When I entered the room I saw Ryo yelling at a woman.  
"What do you think you're doing?" I snapped at him while grabbing his shoulder. He tensed up a little bit.  
"Can't you talk normally? If she made a mistake, you tell her. You don't make her cry!"  
"She kept doing the same mistake over and over again."  
"I don't care. Yell at workers when you're at your own office. Not mine. Wait for me at my office." He rolled his eyes and walked out. I hope I got through to him.  
"Hey. I'm sorry for his behavior. He's just a little tense. I'll make sure he apologizes. Now go refresh yourself." The woman nodded before leaving for the bathroom. 

Now for Ryo.

I walked back up to my office. I was surprised when I found Ryo actually waiting in front. I let him in and locked the door behind me.  
"What the fuck do you think you're doing? First of all, what were you even doing down there? You are assigned to help around the Communications and Information Division, and others of the sort. You have no business down in the fucking finance division! Second of all, I know you're mad at me. But that is no excuse to yell at an innocent woman! Know your fucking place. I won't allow for you to terrorize my co-workers. Do you understand?"  
"..."  
"What do you have to say for yourself?"  
"You know what?"  
"What?"  
"I hate that I love you. I despise that part of me more than anything. Every day I wish for that part of me to rot. I hate the feeling I get when I see you laugh or smile. I loath it. I loath the very day I met you at that fucking bar. The day you walked into my shitty life and made it brighter. But you also made the shadow darker. You make me hate loving you. But I still love you. And I cant stop. I cant imagine life without every day being filled with hate for the feelings I have for you. That's why I cant stop. That's why I don't want to stop. I want to feel that every fucking day. I want to feel that punishment every day. Because that's what I deserve. Nothing more."  
"..." I could see his mind shatter. Tears formed at the end of his eyes. Those godforsaken opal eyes gave away everything. It hurt to see those eyes red and watery. Like someone was repeatedly stabbing my heart. I couldn't bare it. The silence between us became deafening.  
"I'm sorry Ryo. If you feel that way we can just sto-"  
"NO! Please I don't want it to stop. Not now, not ever. I've learnt to deal with my conflicting emotions. And accepted that you're my weakness."  
"Look, Ryo. I feel the exact same way. Our relationship can be exhausting, stressful, painful even. But it can also be fun, happy, relaxing, and I do genuinely love you. And I genuinely hate that I love you. Those feeling torture me the same way they torture you. It hurts every day. But I also never want it to stop. I wont to keep going and endure it. Because it means a lot to me. Ryo, you have became a part of my life so big, that if you left it would leave a huge, gaping hole. Everything would be numb. Every emotion would leave. There'd be nothing left. That's why I want to stay together. To never be separated. No matter how much it tortures me." 

At this point the both of us were crying. Everything was both falling apart and was put back into place. It was all so confusing yet I understood everything. 

We need each other. No matter what.

No matter the pain, torture, hate etc... we are two halves. 

I hugged him. We both needed each others warmth right now. His heartbeat never failed to calm me down. Even though It was beating extremely fast. The two of us fell to the floor, still holding each other. 

"I'm sorry Ryo..."  
"I'm sorry too."

We eventually got up. I went to the bathroom and Ryo went to apologize to that woman.  
I stared at the reflection. It stared back at me. Laughing and making fun of me.  
"Be stronger next time. You'll lose him."  
"Shut up..."  
"Why? I'm right and you know it. Stop being a fucking whore and pull yourself together. Or is that all you're good for? Crying and sucking dick? Huh?"  
"Just shut up."  
"You need to shut up and listen to me. Get up and stop feeling sorry for yourself. You don't deserve that. Maybe if you lost some weight he wouldn't hate you. Go and earn some self respect."  
"I SAID SHUT UP!"  
I broke the mirror again. It all went silent. I was gripping my head. It hurts. It wont stop. My vision became blurry.  
...  
...  
I kept staring at a broken piece of glass splattered with blood from my fist. Do not give in. Do not give in.

Everything started spinning.  
It all of a sudden became black. Just blackness.  
...  
...  
...  
...  
...  
Huh? A white light? No that's a...  
"Lilith? Lilith! Thank god you're awake!" Is that Ryo?  
"W-Where am I..?"  
"You're at the nurses office."  
"What happened?"  
"Well I was walking back to your office, when I passed the bathroom. I heard some noises in there, and when no one responded, I went inside. There I found you laying on the floor and a broken mirror. I called for help and we moved you here. That's about it. I haven't left your side since then."  
"I'm sorry..."  
"What? Why?"  
"You had to wait here..for me to wake up."  
"Oh my god, Lilith! Don't say bullshit like that. Id wait days here if I have to. You know, It hurt seeing you like that. Seeing you hurt hurts me."  
"...For how long have I been asleep."  
"A few hours now."  
I looked over to the windows and saw darkness. It was already night!  
"Shit!" I immediately sat up. I started unpinning my IV and all the other things attached to my arms.  
"What the hell are you doing?"  
"I haven't done any work today! I have to-"  
"Its fine. I talked with Aria and she assigned someone else to do the work for you."  
"..." I sat there, staring into space. How could I let someone else do my chunk of work? I'm so selfish.  
"Wanna go to our usual place?" I smiled weakly at him.  
"Yes..I do."  
I changed and left the nurses office.  
"I have to run back to my office to get my stuff. Wait for me here."

I quickly ran back up to my office. When I opened the door, I saw a bunch of flowers on my desk. I almost cried to be honest. Each one of them had a small card attached to them, saying why they left flowers.  
" "Because you helped me earlier today." -Sofia from finance" Oh my god...  
"And this one is for making me feel again." I turned around to find Ryo in the doorway. He had the prettiest rose in his hands. A tear rolled down my cheek. I took the only vase I had and placed his rose in it. I wiped my tears.  
"Why are you crying?"  
"It's just...it means a lot. Knowing I impacted someones life where they remember me. Especially you, Ryo. I've never thanked you for how much you changed my life for the better and for the worse. It also made me feel again. You allowed me to love again. It may not be the purest love, but it's love regardless. Thank you, Ryo. I love you."  
"Thank you too, Lilith. You also impacted my life. A lot. You also allowed me to love again. Allowed me to feel and be again. I wouldn't be where I am today without you. I love you, Lilith."  
I leaned in and kissed him softly. It was all so slow and gentle. Worshiping each other. Like its our first time. After we went to the bar.


	8. 24/9/ 12:00AM

While we were at the bar I got a message from Aria.  
>>New Message (Aria): Emergency meeting. You, Me, Lucifer and whoever he brings. In 30 minutes.  
What in the...?  
"Did you get the same message?" Ryo said while looking at his phone.  
"Yeah. Do you thinks it's about...?  
"Yes. We should go." We paid for the drinks and left. Ryo drove us back to the main building. We arrived 15 minutes early. As we were walking up to the conference room Ryo broke the silence.  
"Are you nervous?"  
"Yeah. What do you think they're gonna say?"  
"I don't know. But it will be fine. With you here, everything will be okay." I smiled at him. We continued the rest of the walk in comfortable silence. We entered the conference room and found Aria frantically trying to get everything ready.  
"You need any help with that?"  
"Oh, Lilith! And...?"  
"Ryo."  
"Right. Lilith and Ryo. You're here early. Could you help me with this?" She handed me four black folders labeled 24/9/ 12:00 AM.  
"What is this?"  
"Its our plan for tonight. Hand them out to everyone."  
I placed the folders on each of our seats. Something about them gave me an ominous vibe. Its currently 8:50 PM.  
Not long after, Lucifer entered the room. We all took our places, and when the meeting officially started it was 9 PM. Three hours left...  
Aria started the conversation.  
"I believe you all know why we've gathered here. In three hours, the "meeting" with our attackers will commence. In my opinion, it is too risky to go alone and I doubt they will go alone either. That's why we decided to bring you two. As the people with most versatile combat skills in respective groups, I believe the safest bet is to bring you two along. You will be provided with weapons and anything else you need. Lilith, I expect you to introduce Ryo to the Armory Division, and let him know how it works."  
"Of course."  
"Good. Onto the next issue. In front of you is a plan on how we are going to assess the situation. I expect you to memorize this by the time we leave. The plan is strictly to be followed, no exceptions. You will be provided with earpieces so we can communicate discreetly and you two can listen in to the conversation. I believe this meeting is of great significance to both of our groups and the city. I expect for this situation to be handled seriously. Any mess up will result in serious punishment. Understood?"  
We all nodded in confirmation.  
"Good. You two are free to leave. You know what is on you to do. We are leaving at 11:30 PM sharp. Be ready by then."  
"Yes, miss."  
"You're dismissed." The two of us took our folders and left the room. Lucifer and Aria stayed inside.  
"What now?" Ryo asked  
"Now we head down to the Armory Division."

The Armory Division was located under the building. Under the parking and over the emergency bunker. It was a huge space filled with all kinds of weapons, armor, gadgets etc. I love being down here.  
"Miss Lilith! I haven't seen you down here in weeks! How have you been?" Oh, Its Sara. Sara works down here and always helps me prepare for a mission. She knows what I use by heart. She was short and stocky but had the sweetest smile. She had a bit of a southern accent.  
"Sara! Hey! I've been good. How about you?"  
"Better now that you're here. And who is this?"  
"That's Ryo. My partner for tonight."  
"He's hot." She whispered.  
The three of us laughed. Sara never failed to make me feel better.  
"So what are you two in for tonight?"  
"We have a huge mission in like two hours."  
"Oh my! You come with me and I'll call someone over to help you out." Sara dragged me by the arm deeper into the room. She clicked a few buttons on her pager before turning her attention back to me.  
"Are we going with the usual?  
"Yup. I'll add more weapons tonight though."  
"Gearing up is on you, darling." She got my outfit ready. I usually wore a tight black jumpsuit with belts around my chest, waist and legs. The waist belt held all the on-hand weapons, the legs had extra pockets and the chest was for extra security. I put on a bullet-proof vest over it. The jumpsuit had a turtleneck collar. I put on my boots and left the changing room. Sara handed me my coat and bag.  
"Thanks Sara, you did well as always."  
"Oh you're being too nice." I waved at her before going down to the weapon section. I loaded up my usual. The two handguns and a hunting knife around my waist. I loaded the bag with all kinds of automatic rifles, a sniper and a shit load of ammo. I left to go to the gadget section to pick up my earpiece, but I walked into Ryo. He looked me up and down with his mouth slightly ajar. He tried to hide his blushing face by covering it.  
I leaned in close to his face and with the tip of my finger closed his mouth shut. I pulled away and walked past him. After I was a good distance away, I burst out laughing. His expression was priceless.  
"Excuse me, miss Belasco?"  
"Yeah?"  
"Miss Aria told me to give this to you." He handed me a small box.  
"Oh, those must be the earpieces. Thanks."  
I took the box from his hand and went over to the mirror to set it up. I stared at my reflection. My mission outfit always made me feel confident. Today was no different. After I set up my earpiece, I fiddled with my hair.  
My hair was white since I can remember. It never hand any color to it. I always kept it shoulder length. My skin was always sickly pale too. And my eyes were red. Doctors told me I had albinism, but that my case was weird. I had thick hair and no vision problems. Actually, quite the opposite, I had abnormally good vision. And my eyes were piercing red. No one gave me an official diagnosis, and I never cared to get one. I just lived with it. Ryo looked the opposite. We shared our pale skin, but he had dark hair and opal eyes. Also the tips of his hair were white, and it didn't look dyed. He was extremely skinny but you could see his muscles perfectly. We were both weirdly looking. But I liked that.

"You look tense." I felt Ryo's hands on my shoulders. I let him gently massage them. He had magical fingers. While he was massaging me, I looked at his outfit. All I could see was a black ankle coat and combat boots. Everything else was hidden under his coat.  
"Are you ready to go?"  
"Yeah." We left the gadget section and headed to the vehicle exit. We were 30 minutes early. Plenty of time to revise the plan. We spent every last minute going through and establishing the plan. 

"Are you two ready?" I heard Aria approaching.  
"Yeah We just finished revising the plan."  
"You will be going by a different car than us. Park a few km away and come close to the bridge. Turn on your earpiece and listen in. I expect that you learnt the codes and will react accordingly to them. Be careful and abide the plan. Good luck." She left us with that and sat in a car."  
"Shall we?"  
Ryo took the driver position and we left the Armored division.

[TIME: 11:32 PM] [28 MINUTES LEFT]


	9. 24/9/ 12:00AM pt. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The meeting is just a few minutes away.

[TIME: 11:45 PM] [15 MINUTES LEFT]

By the time we hit our designated spot, it was 11:45 PM. Ryo parked near a building with a direct view of the bridge. We climbed up to the rooftop and took our positions. I set up a sniper pointing at exact meeting spot, while Ryo scouted for enemies. I heard my earpiece crackle before a voice broke through.

"Lilith do you hear me?"  
"Yes, miss"  
"Good. There is five minutes left, take your positions and stay alert. Keep your earpieces on."  
"Copy." The earpiece went silent. I loaded my sniper and positioned it. Through the scope, I saw Aria and Lucifer near the bridge. Three minutes left.

"Well, Phantom. Are you ready?"  
"Do not call me that. And yes, I'm more than ready."  
"Remember to keep your composure."  
"I'm not dumb." He turned around and continued looking. 

"Wait, Ryo."  
"What is it?"  
"I see someone at the bridge. There is two of them and they're wearing all white." He grabbed the binoculars from the bag and took a look.  
"Shit you're right."  
"Aria, there is two of them on your six. Proceed with caution."  
"Are you in position?"  
"Yes." I adjusted the target so it hits their head. I followed them while they were walking down the bridge. Ryo loaded his guns and stayed low.

Through my earpiece an unfamiliar voice broke through.   
"I presume you're Aria and Lucifer?"  
"You presumed right. Who am I having the pleasure of speaking to?" Formal as always, Aria.  
"I am X. And this is my companion, Y." As he turned to point to this Y person, he looked directly at me. A shiver ran down my spine.  
"Lilith. Focus." Right. I regained my composure and gripped the trigger."  
'What do you want from us?" I heard Aria again.  
"To keep it simple, we want this city. You two had it under your control for too long."  
"What even...why do you want this city?"  
"Money, of course. We could profit a lot from taking over. There is also and underlying motive of hate towards both of your groups. Especially yours, Aria." I'll never forget what that little Phantom of yours did to us." I stopped breathing for a second there. This is all because of...me?  
"So, vengeance?" Lucifer finally spoke up. "If the Phantom and money is all you want, we can provide that to you. Right, Aria?" Everyone was confused apart from Lucifer and me.   
"Do you know who the Phantom is?!" Aria whispered.  
"Of course I do. Its for the city." For the city huh.... "Name your price."

The enemies were dumbfounded. I dropped my gun and left my spot.  
"Oh no you're not going anywhere." Ryo gripped me by the shoulders. "Are you fucking insane?! Who gives a fuck about the past? Fuck everyone! Them, Aria, Lucifer and this city! I already lost so much, I cant lose you too.  
"Ryo. Listen to me. I have to do this. I'll be fine. This is not the end." I shook him off and continued down. I walked all the way to the meeting spot. The moment I stepped on that bridge, at least five red spots appeared on my body. At this point nothing could phase me. I raised my hands in the air.  
"Shit it actually is her." I heard X say.  
"Lilith, please, you don't have to do this. We'll find another way."   
"No, Aria. It's fine. I'll go. You two give them the money that they want. Let's end this stupid war."  
I moved closer Y and X with my arms still in the air.

"Drop all your weapons on the ground." I untied the knife and handguns from my waist and dropped them to the floor.  
"Good. Now kneel to the ground. I did as they said. They came behind me and tied my wrists together. They propped me up and dragged me over the bridge. As I turned my head again one last time, I saw Ryo running towards the bridge with tears in his eyes. He was inaudibly screaming. I heard him yell my name multiple times. 

I smiled at him, tears forming at the ends of my eyes and turned my head back around. 

They blindfolded me and stuffed me in a van. I felt the engine turn on and we started to move. We were driving for quite some time before the van suddenly stopped. The engine turned off and I heard footsteps. But no one opened the door. The footsteps slowly faded away and I was met with complete silence. I took this opportunity to untie myself. I hid the earpiece somewhere in the van. I turned off both the mic and speaker but I left the earpiece itself on. I knew it had a built-in tracking device, but I could only hope the battery will stay alive for long enough. I knew I probably didn't have enough time, so I retied my arms and put my blindfold back on.  
And I was right.  
The footsteps returned not long after. Becoming louder and louder..until I heard a click. The van door suddenly opened. I couldn't see who opened it, but I felt two large pars of hand grab me by the shoulder and prop me up on my feet. By the sudden temperature change, I could tell I'm outside.  
"Damn..she's hot. I might just have to join in later."  
"You know what boss said." They both laughed before dragging me somewhere. We were walking for quite a while before I heard a heavy door creak open. I then suddenly felt something cold touch my wrist.  
"What is going on?"  
"Oh, so you can speak? You'll find out soon enough." I heard something click before a heavy metal thing wrapped around my wrist..and then the other. I felt myself slowly lose ground. And by the time they took my blindfold off...

"Look at those eyes...makes me want to gouge them out." I was propped up by metal chains in a dark, musty room. I got a good look and the two guys. They were two tall-ish fat white men.   
"Should we take a good look at her?"  
"Man I want to too, but boss will kill us."  
"But he doesn't have to find out."  
"Find out what?" That X guy from earlier appeared in the doorway. "You two get out." The two fat asses scurried out of the room. After the door closed, X spoke up.

"Finally, after all these years...I have my hands on the infamous Phantom."  
"What do you want from me?"  
"I want to make you suffer like I did back then. I want you to feel what it's like."  
"Oh believe me I know all to well what it's like to suffer. If you want to torture me that much, go for it. At least tell me why. I killed numerous people as the Phantom, you have to jog my memory."  
"You don't remember? Nine years ago when you killed my family?" Nine years ago? That's when I became the Phantom. At the ripe age of 14.   
"Sorry that narrows it down only by a little bit."  
"What about now?" He took off his long ass white coat and revealed an all too familiar outfit.

[9 YEARS AGO]  
"Target neutralized."   
"Good job, little Phantom." The earpiece went silent. I wiped the blood from my cheek while towering over 5 corpses. I heard sobbing from the other room. I walked around the house before finding a little boy curled up in his closet, sobbing. He looked to be around my age, maybe a year or two younger.   
"Stop crying." He didn't. At that time, I couldn't understand why he was crying. I didn't understand what it felt like to lose someone you genuinely loved.

[CURRENT TIME]  
"I remember now...you're the kid from the closet. Your family was my first target as the Phantom."  
"Yeah, I'm glad you remember. Me and Y aren't the only ones here. There are thousands of people here. All affected by the Phantom. And they're all itching to get their hands on you."  
"I'm not the Phantom anymore though. I quit a little over 5 years ago. It's just a job and a kid needs to survive. I'm sorry."  
"You think a sorry is going to help? If I could I could let all those people destroy you. Luckily for you, I wont let that happen. I could earn so much money off of you."  
"How exactly?"  
"You'll work for me."  
"In your dreams."  
"I wouldn't get so brave if I were in your place. Not abiding me could prove lethal." Fuck. I guess I'll need to wait before attempting to escape.  
"Now let me show you around." He took off those chains and lowered me to the ground. What was the point of hanging me up in the first place?

He led me down a dim hallway. As we went deeper sounds of people cheering became louder and louder. He opened a door and before me appeared a huge boxing ring with seats filled with people surrounding it. I get it now.  
Betting.  
"You'll earn too. I'll be giving you 10% of all betting money."  
"Fifty."  
"Or what?"  
"Or I kill you and everyone else here." He visibly tensed up.  
"...fine. Have it your way. You better preform good. Go get ready. You're next."

I walked into the huge room. The current round was coming to a close.  
Suddenly a girl in very provocative clothing latched onto my arm.  
"You must be the Phantom! I heard so much about you. I'm Jessica by the way." She dragged me into a changing room and gave me gym clothes. When I tried them on, they were extremely tight and provocative.   
"Are you done?" She peeked into the dressing room. "You look so good!"   
"Could you bring me something more comfortable? Like knee length shorts and a sports bra?"  
"I don't think I can do that."  
"I don't care. Do what you have to, just bring me the clothes." She reluctantly left me alone. After a few minutes, she came back with my requested clothes.  
"Boss is gonna be mad."  
"I don't give a fuck." I closed the door and changed. Now this is much better.

"Phantom girl! You're out in 5!"  
I left the changing room and walked onto the ring. The audience had mixed reactions. Some of them screamed in excitement while others were confused. At my outfit probably.   
My opponent was a typical muscle head who lives at the gym and has steroids for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Plus he looked so cocky. Gross.  
"Our newest opponent is the long wanted assassin, the Phantom! Many want to see her crushed to a pulp, while others want to see her skills in action." What a weird way to announce me.  
I stood before the muscle head and the referee stood between us.  
"Uh one question?" I asked him.  
"Ask."  
"How far is too far? Like what are the limits, you know? At what point do you interfere?"  
"I break it up when I judge that either of you are in a life threatening situation."  
"Oh, okay thanks."  
"Any other questions?" The two of us shook our heads no.  
"Good."

START!


	10. Match

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lilith participates in a stream of matches.

START!

The muscle head immediately launched at me, but I easily dodged. Looks like he relies on his raw strength only, so this will be easy. He continued to chase me around and throw punches at me, but it was painfully easy to dodge them. As I was dodging, I accidentally let out a yawn. It made the audience laugh and my opponent mad. I should probably wrap this up now.

He had at least a million openings. I targeted the easiest one to hit. I punched him in the gut, making him collapse immediately. I straddled him and repeatedly punched him in the face. I heard a few cracks, so I probably broke his nose. I continued punching until the ref blew the whistle. I stepped off of him. The ref raised my hand.  
"Our winner is the Phantom!"  
This is kind of fun.

I went through countless matches. All of them were similar to the first one, so I barely broke a sweat. All of them except...this one.   
On the ring walked a man who looked the exact opposite to me. He was the same height as me, but had extremely dark skin and hair. His eyes were ocean blew, with a weird glow to them.   
"Hey, do I know you from somewhere?"  
"You'll find out." He had a raspy voice. He gave me a weird vibe. 

The ref blew the whistle and at that same moment, he disappeared. The boy who was standing right before me has vanished into thin air. In that same second I was punched into my jaw and sent flying across the ring. Thanks to my fast reflexes, I landed to my feet.   
He was already in my face. My reflexes were faster this time. I bent him over my knee and kicked him in the stomach. He coughed up some blood, but managed to regain his balance. His speed almost matched mine.

We were on separate sides of the ring once again.  
"No wonder you were always ahead of me."  
"What do you mean?"  
"Do you still not remember? From the assassin training camp? I was always second to you. Eventually I got kicked out for killing that janitor but I never got to repay you."  
"Wait..you're that creep who was always obsessed with me at camp? Man, you were weird. You probably still are."  
"You're still a whore aren't you? I always thought you were ahead of me because all the trainers took advantage of you. You were pretty back then, and you still are. You did it all just to stay no. 1. Even sucked the coaches dick. Unbelievable.

I broke a promise just now. A promise to never let me fall back into that hole again. A promise to never flip that switch again. A promise to myself. At this point I didn't control what I did. My only objective is to kill.  
"Oh there it is! Your infamous killer mode! I heard so much about it! I finally get to see it in per-" I cut him off. My hands were around his throat. I was lifting him in the air.  
"If you don't shut that filthy hole you call a mouth right now you won't survive."  
I threw him against the room. He crashed into the cement wall, leaving a few cracks. The referee blew the whistle marking the end of the match. The "killer mode" slowly wore off, and I collapsed to the floor. I was breathing heavily. My forehead was covered in sweat. I saw X get up and leave the room.   
Its finally over. For now at least. 

I dragged myself back to the dressing room. I took a shower and put on clothes that Jessica left me. X was waiting for me outside.  
"You did good today, here's 50% of today's earnings." He handed me a stack of money.  
"I'll lead you to the room where you'll be staying." We walked down a different hallway. He opened a door to a bland looking room. But it had everything I need, so I couldn't complain.  
"Breakfast is tomorrow at 8 AM at the cafeteria." He left the room, leaving me alone. I walked around the room a little bit before collapsing on the bed. I couldn't stop thinking about that guy from earlier. But someone else stopped me. 

I heard someone fiddle with my doorknob. I got up and went to the door. I opened the door to find some guy trying to open my door.  
"Do you need something?"  
"...I saw your match today, and I wanted to meet you in person." What even... I mean, whats the worst that can happen? If push comes to shove I'll just beat him up.  
"Uh..sure. Come in, I guess." I moved aside so that he can come in. As far as I could tell he didn't have any weapons on him.  
He sat on my bed since there wasn't anywhere else to sit. So I sat next to him.  
"So uh...do you have a boyfriend?" Wow that was bold.  
"Yes." I reflexively said. But Ryo and I aren't even official..right?  
"Oh no wonder..you're really pretty." He put his hand over mine. Talk about a quick mover. I suppose I'll let him have this. Nothing more though.  
I noticed he kept staring at my breasts. Should I tease him a little bit? I am bored anyway...  
I grabbed his chin and brought his face up to mine. "My eyes are over here." It was hard not to laugh. He got red and started breathing heavily. Not to mention the obvious bulge underneath his pants.  
I let go of his face. Now he kept staring at my face. This man clearly never had a crumb of pussy in his life.

He slid his hand on my thigh, dangerously close. I honestly felt bad for him, since he clearly never had saw a naked girl in his life. I took his hand into mine and twisted it. I kept twisting until I heard a crack. He wouldn't stop yelling. I kicked him out of my room.   
What a creep.

I locked my door and went back into my room. I fell asleep almost instantly. 

I had a dream.

It was Ryo. He extended his hand to mine and gripped it tightly, pulling me out of somewhere.  
As soon as I woke up I knew this was gonna be my last day here.


	11. Escaping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ryo and others break into the building to bail you out. Everything goes smoothly. Right?

I wandered through the halls in search of the cafeteria. Why did this place even have one? Nothing about this made sense, just thinking about it gave me a headache. So I tried not to.  
"I wouldn't go in there alone if I were alone." Jessica appeared next to me.  
"Why not?"   
"Almost everyone here hates you."   
"No shit. Are they gonna try and hurt me or something?"  
"Not physically, since they're prohibited from doing so. But they'd probably give you shitty food or put something in it. Whatever they think of."  
"Well what do I do?"  
"Endure it. Don't worry though, I'm assigned to help you."  
"Were you forced to?"  
"Not really. They picked me and I didn't have a problem with it."  
"Right. Thanks."   
We went into the cafeteria in silence. 

As soon as I entered everyone stared at me. No one said anything, but their eyes did it for them. I ignored it for the most part. The two of us grabbed the awful looking lunch and sat at a table.   
"So..what is this place?"  
"It's kind of hard to explain. Its part a "refugee center", and by that I mean a group of people affected by you who grouped together to try and take advantage of you. And part illegal betting grounds. There's multiple levels to the building, each one assigned to a specific thing. Like the first and second are for the "refugees" And third to sixth are for betting. We are currently on the fourth floor, dedicated to boxing. Some others are gambling and other sports. On each floor there is three betting grounds, a cafeteria and rooms for participants, like you. Oh and also, aside from the first floor, the building is underground."  
"Why is this even a thing?"  
"Beats me. Money I guess."  
"Why are you telling me all this?"  
"Because I hate this place. I don't want to be here. Unfortunately, I can't leave. That's the only reason."  
"Then leave with me."  
"What?"  
"They're coming for me. I know they are. If you want to escape this is your chance."  
"What does that mea-" The sound of alarm cut her off. A voice echoed through the loudspeakers 

"Everyone, we are under attack. Please return to your rooms this instant. Stay calm and don't leave your rooms." The alarm continued blaring.  
"Now or never." I took of running down the hallway. I let Jessica lead me to the stairs. Thankfully no one was there, for now. As we reached the third floor, sounds of loud footsteps became louder.  
"Jessica, I need you to trust me. Stay near me and never stop running. Okay?"  
"Okay."  
We continued running down the hallway. We stopped near a corner and I peeked around. There were three armed security guards standing watch.  
"I'm gonna deal with them. When I give you the signal, it means it's clear."   
I rounded the corner and charged towards the guards. They started shooting at me, but I got close to the floor. I slid towards them, and stabbed them under the knee. They all collapsed to the floor.   
"Now!" Jessica came from behind the corner and we continued running. When we reached the second floor staircase, Jessica stopped me.  
"The first and second floor are swarmed with refugees and guards. Also the boss is probably up there, looking for you."  
"Don't worry about that. My coll...friends from above will help us out."  
"How do you even know it's them?"  
"I just do. Let's go now."  
We climbed up to the second floor. As soon as we did, we hid behind a corner. The coast was clear, so we continued moving. I had no problem running without noise, but Jessica did. I stopped her.  
"Whats wrong?"  
"You're making too much noise when you run."  
"What?"  
I showed her my technique of concealing footsteps. Thankfully she's a quick learner.  
"Keep this in mind at all times. We can't afford to be seen or heard."  
We continued going. As we were coming near the final staircase, a gunfire became louder and louder. I hid behind a pillar until the gunfire either stopped or slowed down. But it didn't. I looked to see what was going and and saw him.   
I saw Ryo leading a gunfight with the guards.

It felt like a weight was lifted from my shoulders. I waited for the right moment to strike from behind. In my hand I clenched a knife I stole from the cafeteria. There were six remaining guards. Now's my chance. I creeped up behind the guards. I stabbed the guard I thought was the leader in the neck. 

"Lilith!"  
"Ryo!" Amidst the gunfight I ran up to him and hugged him tightly.  
"I missed you."  
I missed you too. And I'm glad you're okay." I pulled the other handgun he had on him and joined the gunfight. Not long after, all of the guards were laying dead on the floor, with minimal casualties.   
"Let's go now."  
"Wait a second. Jessica, you can come out now." She slowly came out from behind the pillars. Guns were immediately pointed at her, clearly scaring her. I raised my hand, motioning them to stop.  
"Everyone, this is Jessica. She helped me come up here, so I expect that you keep her safe at all times. If she is missing so much as a hair you will be killed. Understood?"  
"Yes miss!"  
"Good. Jessica, you go with them." She walked over to the men and they started piling out. When we were all alone in the hallway, I couldn't resist kissing Ryo.   
"I missed this so much."  
Hand in hand, we left the hallway. He gave me an earpiece and my two favorite handguns.   
"Uh, boss? We have a bit of a problem here." I heard through the earpiece.   
"Whats the situation?"  
"The entrance is blocked?" Ryo and I instantly took off running. We reached the first and final floor. The sudden wave of sunlight burned my eyes. It took me a moment to adjust. In that moment a gun was pointed at my forehead.  
"Lilith!"  
"You're not going anywhere."


	12. The Crowning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A day full of surprises.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains graphic depictions of suicide. It also mentions drugs and self inflicted injuries, upon other possibly triggering content. Read at your own discretion.

I heard Ryo scream my name.  
"If you move, she dies." He immediately froze up. The look on his face was heart-wrenching. No one could do anything.  
"What do you want from me? Just fucking tell me already."  
"I want to exploit you and see you die. Didn't I already tell you?"  
"There has to be more to it. You would've killed me by now if you wanted to." I could tell his grip on the gun loosened a bit. By the look of his face, he was contemplating something. This may be my only chance.

I grabbed the gun and snatched it out of his hands. Ryo quickly hit him in the back of the head and he collapsed. With the gun pointed at his head, I crouched to check if he's alive.  
"He's still breathing, just unconscious. Tie him up and bring him to the office. Leave him in the talking room." Everyone quickly got to doing their job. I let out a sigh of relief.  
"Is it...over?"  
"I think so." Ryo came up behind me.  
"Wait. wasn't there another guy? Y or something?"  
"Follow me." He grabbed my hand and led me deeper onto the first floor.   
"This is the main office." He opened the door and an unsightly scene appeared before me. The man I only knew as Y, was hanging from a chandelier.   
"Shit..." I took a closer look at the hanging body. There were no visible indicators of him being murdered, so it must've been a suicide. His neck was heavily bruised and the rope was badly damaged. None of this made sense. Why go to this extent?

Ryo and I looked further through the office before sitting down in front of the computer. The screen was displaying a window, saying: INSERT PASSWORD. Ryo cussed under his breath.  
"Lets try and look for the password."  
I searched the desk, while Ryo searched the rest of the office. There was nothing on the desk's surface, so I moved onto the drawers. There were three in total, and the one at the bottom had a key lock.   
The first one had some stationary and mostly paperwork. Nothing of interest.  
The second one contained a small key, spare change, a bag of cocaine and other miscellaneous stuff. I took the key out and tried it on the third drawer. Conveniently, it worked.  
The third, and final one had some old pictures, a lot of them. I looked through some of them. They appeared to be X's childhood photos. I could only recognize him because of what happened nine years ago, so I could only assume for the other people. There were a lot of pictures of him and I think his mom. They looked close. Aside from his mother's, there were a lot of pictures of what I think is Y. Comparing the pictures, It definitely was him. So they were childhood friends... The remaining photos were of his family. I put the pictures aside and continued searching through the drawer. I came across a letter, a post-it note and a folder. The post it note contained a series of numbers, so I suppose it was the password. The letter was long, so I didn't bother to read it yet.   
And the folder... The first thing I saw when I opened it were pictures of me. A terrifying amount. I couldn't bare reading through it now, so I saved it for later.

"Uh..Ryo?"  
"What's up?"  
"I found the password."  
He sat next to me again as I typed the password. Thankfully it worked and the computer unlocked. There weren't very many files.   
"Where should we start?" No where apparently. Through the earpiece, we heard a man.  
"Boss, we need to leave."  
"Right, of course. Give us 10 minutes."   
"I have a flash drive on me."  
"Of course you do." He pulled out the flash drive from his pocked and copied all the files from the computer onto the drive.  
"We can go now."  
"Wait, Ryo. One last thing."  
I turned the loudspeaker on, and said into the mic:  
"Everyone, this is the Phantom speaking. You are free to leave the premises. You don't have to come back. Do what you wish." I turned the mic off and left the building. 

There were three vans outside, each assigned their own purpose. Ryo and I sat in the one meant for our transport. Ryo gave me the clothes I left that night at the Armory Division.   
"Put these on, I don't like seeing you in raggedy clothes." So I did. I changed back into my old clothes. It felt good to feel the warmth of my own clothing. Ryo and I were the only one in the van, so I took the opportunity to rest my head on his shoulder. He gently patted my head, keeping me close.  
"You can rest now, Lilith."  
That sentence alone was enough to make me fall asleep. It was more a nap, but it felt like heaven. I've honestly never slept better. The faint sound of his breathing, the rhythmic beating of his heart and his overall warmth made this nap all the more special.  
"Lilith?" I felt Ryo gently try to wake me up. "We're back home."   
I got back up. I've never felt more energized. I jumped out of the van and went to talk about what are we gonna do with X. I told them once again to tie him up and lock him in the talking room.  
"Make sure he can't get out. Double the number the guards. Do anything you have to, just make sure he doesn't escape." One last thing I have to do before I go back to my office.

"Jessica?"  
"Phantom girl!" She came running at me and gave me a tight hug.  
"Please, call me Lilith. Tell someone to take you to the nurses office. After you are done there, ask someone to direct you to my office. There we'll talk about job and housing opportunities. Sounds good?"  
"Yes! Thank you so much Lilith."  
"Oh, and also, no one can refuse your question. It's my order."  
"You're the best." She gave me another hug before leaving.

"Are you ready to go back?" I heard Ryo behind me. I stared at the huge building in admiration. This place is a huge part of me. Every memory here I cherish deeply. Both the good and bad ones. Without it, I wouldn't be who I am today. I'm grateful for it.  
"Yeah..I'm ready."  
Together we walked through the familiar entrance, and were met by the familiar lobby. The only difference was...  
"Welcome back!!" A large group of people were waiting by the door. They all had flowers and presents in their hands. I almost cried.  
"What is all this?"  
"We decided to surprise you when you came back, so we gathered as much people as possible to meet you here."  
We all gathered for a big group hug. I never imagined anyone would go out this much for me.   
"Thank you everyone."  
"Oh, we should hurry! We're gonna be late for Miss Aria's speech."  
"Her speech?"  
"Yeah, she said she'll hold a speech when you come back, apparently it's important." What even? This makes no sense? Why now? Why was the criteria for me to be back? This is all so chaotic.

We entered the huge ballroom in the other building. The tables were filled with people and food. Security escorted me to a table where only Ryo was sitting, but there were plates for two more people. I sat next to Ryo.  
"Do you have any idea what is going on?"  
"Not in the slightest. The only thing I know is that both Aria and Lucifer are holding a speech. At the same time I think." Wait, Lucifer too?

I heard Aria clear her throat through the mic. She looked professional as always. On the stage next to her was Lucifer.   
"I believe everyone here is familiar with the situation regarding our lead executive, Lilith Belasco. I'm taking this moment to thank Lilith for her devotion and loyalty to The Demigods. She has done so much for this group, and I am truly thankful. Lucifer will now take over before we get to the main part."  
"Thank you, Aria." I also want to thank miss Belasco for her help in ending this stupid war. Without her, we wouldn't be sitting here. But I also want to thank Ryo Agawa. Ryo has gone above and beyond as the lead executive of Angles of Wrath. He lead today's rescue mission. I believe that both of them are essential parts of our groups. That's why Aria and me want to announce our retirement. Our places will take Lilith Belasco and Ryo Agawa. This is in effect as of right now."

The room was dead silent. Ryo and I were dumbfounded. What in the world is going on today?  
"Would you two please come up to the stage?" The two of us, still confused, silently walked onto the stage.  
Aria patted my shoulder. "You'll be fine. I know you can do this." Wow thanks I'm not scared anymore.   
I took the mic into my sweaty hands.  
"Uh...I'm surprised as much as you are at this sudden change. But I assure you, I'm going to do my best as the new leader. Aria entrusted me with this position, so I must live up to her expectations. I'm going to lead the Demigods to the best of my ability."  
I handed the mic to Ryo.  
"I feel the same as Lilith. I want to live up to Lucifer's expectations and lead the Angels to prosperity." Applause echoed through the ballroom.   
"Do you have anything you want to put in effect right now? Like your first order as leader?""  
"Yes...Yes I do." I turned to the audience again. "What I want to do right now is end this decades old rivalry. In my eyes, it is unnecessary to fight among ourselves, when we are constantly exposed to outside threats. The past few days proved exactly that. We're better when we work together. From this day onward, violence among The Demigods and Angels of Wrath is strictly prohibited. Any violations of this rule are punishable accordingly. I hope Ryo agrees with me."  
"Of course I do. The same rule apply's to the Angels." He grabbed my hand in his and raised it in the air. "The Angels and Demigods are not enemies, but friends. An alliance is what we need instead of a rivalry."

Everyone was shocked. A small clap started behind us. It was Lucifer. He had a small smile on his face. Everyone did the same as him, until the whole room was applauding.  
After a little while, the music started playing and everyone got to dancing an eating.   
"You two have to do the official pledge and alliance ceremony now."   
"Oh, right." The four of us left the room and went to my new office. 

The two of us pledged our lives to the groups. After came the alliance ceremony.   
"I oath to keep this sacred bond alive and this alliance pure." The two of us chanted in unison. We then took the special blades and sliced our palms. We then held our bleeding hands, symbolizing the blood mixing. And now it was done. There is officially an alliance between the two groups. After decades of fighting. 

We bandaged our hands and went back to the ballroom.


	13. Make Him Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Its time to find out why did the recent war start.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains detailed descriptions of violence and sexual intercourse. Read at your own discretion.

Its been a few days since I became boss.   
Everything is running smoothly. I invited Ryo over. I have to make X talk.   
The only thing I'm afraid of is the power getting to my head. I'm afraid of loosing myself again.

I met up with Ryo at the entrance and we went down to the "Talking Room" a.k.a. the torture room. The walk down was silent. Neither of us said anything. Until Ryo stopped me at the final hallway.   
"Hey. What's wrong."  
"It's nothing."  
"No. It's something. You know you can tell me anything. If this is too much for you, you don't need to do this."  
"No, it's fine. I have to do this."  
"Ok, now please tell me whats wrong."  
"I'm scared Ryo. I'm scared this facade will crumble. That everything I've worked for will be for nothing. That I'll go back to how I was before."  
"Lilith. You wont go back to that. You've worked hard for this. I'm here to help. I'll help carry your weight. Please..I don't want to see you hurt." He pulled me close. I rested my head on his shoulder. I noticed he held me like that again. Like a fragile doll that'll break at any moment. 

"Lets go now Ryo." He held my hand and we went to the Talking Room. We found X still tied up and asleep.  
"Get up." I kicked him in the knee. He abruptly woke up.  
"Talk and we wont hurt you. Why did you start all this."  
"I'm never gonna talk."  
"Oh yeah?" I grabbed the pliers off the table filled with all kinds of torture devices. I went over and crouched near him. "What if I take off your nails?"  
"W-wait!"   
"How about this? I take off one nail every time you refuse to speak. And since you refused the first time, I'll take of one nail." I plied off one nail. The blood splashed on my fingers. X started screaming like crazy.  
"Shut up before I start taking off your fingers."  
"F-fine! I'll speak! Just, p-please! Spare me!"  
"I can't promise anything. Just get on with it."  
"Right, so...my resentment for you started on that day 9 years ago. My greed also started growing since then. My resentment grew stronger when I found out your group took away Yaakov, or Y. They sent him away to a training camp. To become like you. That day I knew I wanted to destroy you and your group. When I turned 18 I started seeking out people affected by the Phantom. I wanted to form a group of people with the same goal as me, with Dylan and I at the top. When I realized I could profit off of you, I decided to not kill you right away, which I suppose was where my plan started crumbling."  
"Where do the Angels tie into this?"  
"Well, we've been spying on you for the past six months. And we found out about your relationship. With this information at hand, we knew we could make you suffer more. It was all for nothing, after all."  
"Is that it?"  
"Pretty much, yes. Anything else is on that computer and the drawers, which I suppose you searched. Also, can I ask one more thing."  
"What is it?"  
"Did Dylan survive?"  
"No. He hanged himself."  
"You can kill me too then."  
"I wasn't planning on keeping you alive anyway."  
I grabbed a knife from the table and walked back over to where X was tied up.  
"What's your name?"  
"Xavier." I nodded my head. I slashed his restraints.   
He got up.   
"Why are you letting me go?"  
"I'm not." I stabbed the knife into his stomach. He collapsed to the floor. I straddled him and continued stabbing. Repeatedly.  
"This is more than you deserve." I couldn't stop stabbing him. That's where I couldn't move my arm anymore. It was held in place by Ryo's strong grip."  
"Rest, Lilith."

I relaxed my arm and snapped back into reality. Ryo helped me up and I collapsed onto his chest. He held me tightly, yet gently. I cried into his shirt. I couldn't stop. I felt so helpless. I couldn't even control myself. I hated myself for this.   
"Lets go." We left the room, me still pressed against him. He instructed the guards to call someone to clean up. He sat me in his car and we left work early. I was sitting in the back seat, hugging my knees.  
I've never felt so out of touch with my own body. I always had issues with self control, but this was eating me from the inside. It hurt. A lot. I was silently crying. The tears were flooding out, but I wasn't making any noise.   
We arrived at Ryo's house, and he picked me up. I still don't know how. He carried me inside and laid me on his bed. He gave me his blanket and laid next to me.  
"Let it all out."  
I inched closer to him, longing to hear his heartbeat again. I wrapped myself around him and positioned my head on his chest. I focused on his heart beat so much so that I didn't notice he was holding me even more gently than before. Like I'm gonna crack any second.  
I noticed him shaking. It wasn't obvious, but I felt it. I pulled his face close to mine and gave him a sweet kiss.   
"I'm gonna be fine." I smiled softly. He pulled my head back to his chest. We stayed like this until we eventually drifted to sleep.

I woke up feeling refreshed. He helped me feel better. I wanted to sneak out and surprise him by making dinner. But I accidentally woke him up. He pulled me by the waist back onto the bed.   
"Where are you going?" He mumbled.  
"To make dinner."  
"No, it's fine. I'll make something." The two of us got up and left for the kitchen. 

Everything was going normally until Ryo "accidentally" dropped something and I bent over to get it. Amazing day to wear a skirt.   
He grabbed my by the hips and slowly pulled me closer to him. I felt the growing bulge under his pants as I bent up. I turned around before kissing him. He didn't hesitate to shove his tongue in right away. He picked me up so that my ass was perfectly sitting in his hands. Fucking dumbass. He placed me on the kitchen counter, his tongue still in my mouth. I unzipped his pants and lowered his underwear. I rubbed his penis in my hands while we were kissing. I felt it get harder and harder in my hands. I could tell he was close, so I stopped rubbing. He quickly took off my underwear and inserted himself inside. I let a moan out by the suddenness. He didn't let me adjust, but continued to thrust in and out. His pace quickened, making me weaker by the second. My legs were trembling and I kept moaning. We came at the same time. But he didn't stop. He kept thrusting in and out at insane speeds. This continued through my third or fourth orgasm. By the end we were both tired and gasping for air. 

I took a shower and joined him out on the balcony. We laid on the ground like we did the first time we met. It was a different balcony, but the same sky. We talked for hours. Nights like these are the best. I almost forgot what happened earlier today. Almost. 

It kept replaying in my head. It was getting harder to ignore it by the second. But I have to do this. I have to keep this facade up. For our sake.


	14. Subordinate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lilith becomes a mentor for a young assassin, soon to be mafia executive.

I came into work as usual, yesterday's events hazily swimming in my head. My personal assistant joined me in my walk to the office.  
"Good morning Jessica."  
"Good morning boss."  
"Jessica, please call me by my name. I said a million times that it's fine!"  
"I'm sorry, Lilith. It's an old habit."  
"It's fine. What do we have on the schedule today?"  
"Apart from the usual, you're meeting your new subordinate today."  
"Subordinate?"  
"Don't you remember the meeting from a few days ago? We agreed on anyone experienced enough to mentoring the highest ranking recruits. You obviously being one of them."  
"Ohh, right! Do you have their profile?"  
"Yup, it's riiight...here." She handed me a folder with the simple label: Sigma. Interesting name. The first thing that caught my eye when I opened the folder was their picture.  
They were clearly young, with split dyed hair. Half black, half white. It looked cool to be honest. They had the most dead-inside look in their eyes. I looked the same when I finished camp. It made me giggle. They overall looked really tired, but I could sense immense potential. This better be good.  
I continued reading through the folder.  
Name: Sigma  
Age: 15  
Gender: Non Conforming   
DOB: 21/10/05 (DD/MM/YY)  
Height: 172 cm  
Weight 57 kg  
H/C: Black and White  
E/C: Grey  
Basic info. I'll read trough the rest when I get to my office. 

"So when are they going to come?"  
"Around 1 PM?" Good. Enough time to prepare.   
We arrived to my office. I placed the folder onto my desk.   
"If you need anything, call me."  
"Of course." Jessica left my office. I stared at the view through the big windows.   
Another poor child getting sent here, setting their life for doom. It hurts, but I can't do anything about it without running the group to the ground. I pushed those thoughts aside and sat behind my desk.   
I gotta prepare now.

I opened the folder again. 

SKILL STAT:  
SPEED: 5/5  
STRENGTH: 5/5  
INTELLIGENCE: 5/5  
EFFICIENCY: 5/5   
OVERALL: 5/5  
Those are some good-ass skills. I continued reading.  
TRAINING REPORT:  
"Excels at everything. Works great under pressure, quick witted, great strength, outstanding speed. One of the best we've ever had. No one at the Training Camp can beat him, so they stopped trying. They are the type to sacrifice themselves for their own gain, making them prone to injuries. The only worry I have is their personality. It seems to push people away instead pf attract them. No kids at the camp try to talk to them. We still aren't aware of the reason. Other than that, an outstanding recruit. Will be a great asset to The Demigods."  
That last sentence made my blood boil. They're much more than a fucking asset to this group. They're a person first and foremost. I fucking hate this place.  
I kept reading..it was mostly basic "best person at camp" stuff, until I read the last paragraph.  
[...]  
"One of the most concerning yet fascinating things about Sigma is a specific situation they got themselves in. It was a regular training session. It was all going normally, until screams were heard. Coaches ran to the place where the screams were coming from, only to find Sigma strangling a fellow trainee. They looked completely calm, nonchalant. It took three coaches to separate the trainee from Sigma. Two things all three coaches noted are: his inhumane strength and his eyes. His eyes were red, with a faint glow to them. No one could explain it. It sounds unreal, but that's what the coaches said. They also said that he was never this strong. Not before, not after. Just at this one point.  
Apparently, what started all of this was the trainee who ended up being choked was making fun of Sigma. Sigma said the trainee wouldn't stop no matter how much they asked. They said that the trainee said something that triggered this weird mode, where his vision was blurry and mind foggy. They could barely remember anything. I don't know how true this is, but I want to trust Sigma. I want to believe that we found another prodigy like The Phantom."

I closed the folder and pushed it away from me. I rubbed my temples. The sudden headache became stronger and stronger. This can't be real. I feel so bad for this child. Because I just know they're gonna get used like I did. I have to at least try and humanize them as much as possible.  
I glanced at the clock. 12:56 PM. Fuck.

I adjusted myself in the mirror. I was so nervous, I even texted Ryo. Looks like he's not available. Oh for fucks sake... I told him to come over and meet Sigma. Hopefully he'll see the message. That's when a knock on my door startled me.  
"Come in!"  
A security guard opened the door and a child that appeared to be Sigma entered my office. He sat in the chair opposite of me and the guard left.  
"Hi! I'm Lilith. I suppose you're Sigma?"  
"Yes." They had a raspy, deep-ish voice. They even sounded tired.  
"Nice to meet you, Sigma. I hope we can get along." They nodded.  
"Okay, so let's make a few things clear right from the start. First, you obey my orders /only/. You are not obliged to listen to anyone but me. You obey my orders exactly as they are. It will be hard in the beginning, but you'll get used to it. Second, I believe you're aware, but this place is rough. Only professionalism is allowed, everything else stays inside. Third, you are to never speak of your profession. If you do, you will be killed. Fourth, no violence between the other groups, unless ordered otherwise. And lastly, you are not a tool. I know exactly how it feels to be used as a killing machine, so please, put your humanity first. If you ever need anything, tell me. Are we clear?"  
"Yes miss."  
"Call me Lilith. Now that we've got that out of the way, what do you want to do first?"  
"Train."   
"Oh, um...we can leave that for later. How about we go on an office tour first?" They nodded and we left my office.

I showed them everything. From the C&I and finance division, to the ballroom and Armored division. I skipped the Talking Room obviously. Along the way, I explained some other rules and policies. After we went around the main building and the two additional ones, we stopped at the main entrance.  
"And for the finale of the tour, I want you to meet someone important."

As if on cue, Ryo entered the building and walked over to us.  
"So this is Sigma?"  
"Nice to meet you sir." He laughed.  
"No need to be so formal, Sigma. Just Ryo is fine."  
"Okay...nice to meet you, Ryo."  
"You seem like a good kid. Take good care of him Lilith."  
"Of course."  
"So when do we get to train?" They looked so excited. You could almost see the stars in their eyes.  
"We can go right now. Go ask that lady to bring you to the training grounds. Get ready there, I'll come a little bit after." They practically ran over to the assistant I pointed to.

I dragged Ryo to the side.  
"I'm worried about them."  
"Why?"  
"Well.." I started getting more nervous. He grabbed me by the shoulders and stared into my eyes.  
"Lilith. Look at me. Everything is going to be okay. Now call down and tell me what's bothering you." He was always good at cheering me up.   
"Fine, thank you." I took a deep breath. "So I was reading through their file, and they seemed like a classic 1st place camp trainee. Until I read the last paragraph." As I got more nervous, Ryo's grip on me tightened. It helped weirdly. It made me feel grounded.  
"There was basically written an outsider view of you know what. And it was provoked by anger. Which is exactly like me and-" He pulled me to his chest, and his heartbeat immediately calmed me down.  
He rubbed my back gently until my heartbeat rhymed with his.  
"Thank you, Ryo."  
"Of course. Don't be to worried about them. Sigma will be fine. And you know what to do in case of emergency."  
"Yes...I need to go now."  
"I'll come too, I want to see what they're capable of."


	15. Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let's see what Sigma can do.

I put on some workout gear and met up with Sigma on the training grounds. Ryo was patiently sitting on the sides.   
"Okay, Sigma, is there any specific thing you want to work on?"  
"I don't know...since I've been named the best at camp, I've felt like I hit a wall. Like I just physically cannot progress further."  
"I understand. Okay then, you'll need to show me what you can do in order for me to see where you're lacking. So pretend I'm a target that needs to be neutralized and attack however you see best. I won't fight back."  
He nodded and prepared himself. 

He quickly came behind my back and restricted my hand. He then lowered me to the ground and placed his hand to my throat, mimicking a knife.  
"Okay, good. Let's do this but I'll fight back. You can use the same or switch up your strategy."   
He let me go and went back to his position. I got back up and prepared for impact.

He changed his strategy, going for a half-surprise attack. He came running at me, but at the last second slid underneath my legs and grabbed them from behind. I saw this attack a million times, so I knew what to do. I placed my hands to the ground and switched all my weight to them and my upper body. With a quick twist of the hip I detached Sigma's hands off my legs. I pushed down and got myself back to my feet. Sigma didn't waste any time. He ran up to me, faster then before. He grabbed onto my shoulders and pushed me down, but I quickly thrusted my head upwards, hitting his jaw. His grip loosened and I got my opening. Not like there weren't a number of others. I grabbed his arms and held them above his head. I then pinned him against the floor, my knee on his throat. I didn't press hard enough to hurt him, but enough to cause discomfort.   
I let him go after a few seconds.

"So, as far as I can tell, you rely on speed and raw strength too much. Also you don't think about your attacks and all the possible outcomes and how to counter them. When you're fighting, you have to be focused non-stop. You have to look for every hole and opening, which you have too much of. If you leave yourself open anywhere, it's almost instant game over. Also speed and strength don't equal a ticket to winning a fight. Sometimes a simple trip or push can flip the tables. You have to utilize everything in and around you."  
"I think I understand. I also wanted to say that the way you fight is mesmerizing."  
"What?"  
"Could I please watch you fight?" I looked over at Ryo. He shrugged and got up.  
"Sure, I guess. Just sit a safe distance away." He nodded and excitedly sat in the spot Ryo was just in.  
"I never saw someone this excited to watch me fight."  
"Uh, hello?" Ryo sarcastically waved at me.  
"You know what I mean. Also you just want the excuse feel me up."  
"I don't need an excuse for that." I rolled my eyes at him. He was right though. He took his coat off and stood against me.

Finally.

He charged at me, using my shoulders to jump up and kick me in the face. I caught his foot and twisted it. He fell down and I straddled him. I used my knee to press in between his legs. I didn't hold back. I pressed against his neck. But he punched me in the throat, making me loose balance. He took this opportunity to flip the situation. He rolled on top of me and wrapped his hands around my neck. Only pressing on the sides. As I was trying to take me off him, my phone rang. The three of us stopped in our tracks. Ryo let me get up and take the call.

"Hello?"  
"Boss, we have an emergency. 11B7 was just raided. The culprits are still at the scene and are stealing more and more product."  
"Right. I'm on it. Deploy our most powerful troops, assign the quantity so we can outnumber them. We're leaving in 15." I hung up.   
"What's wrong?"   
"11B7 was raided and they're stealing our product."  
"Don't the Angels have some stuff there too?"  
"Yes, that's why I want you to come with. Deploy your troops as well. We're meeting in 10 minutes at the Armory Division." I grabbed Sigma by the hand and we split up. 

Me and Sigma headed down into the Armory Division.  
"Where are we going?"  
"As I already said, we're going into the Armory Division. You have under 10 minutes to get ready and gear up. I need you to note that this is an extremely important mission. If you don't take it seriously you will face punishment. Do your best." We split up at the entrance to the Armory Division.   
I headed over to Sara's station.   
"Sara, please prepare everything as fast as possible. We're in a hurry."  
"Okay!" I heard her behind a counter. I stepped inside a changing room and took off my clothes. In the meantime Sara handed me my outfit. I quickly changed and went to the weaponry section.  
I loaded my waistband with the usual, and a bag with bullets and some other guns. I met up with Sigma at the vehicle exit of the Armory Division. He was wearing black pants with overalls and a long sleeve white shirt. He had a choker around his neck and some chains around his waist. He also had a small Greek letter drawn under his eye, resembling his name. I saw his weapons of choice, and was satisfied.  
"You really went all out, huh? You're missing one thing though." I ran back to the changing rooms and got my old black coat.   
"Here.." I put the coat on him. It suited him perfectly.   
"Thank you, Lilith."  
"It's nothing." I gave him a hug. A few seconds after, Ryo walked over to us.

"Let's go." The three of us sat in one of the many vans parked. We headed out.


	16. Head On

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meeting the thieves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains graphic descriptions of violence. It is also a roller coaster. Read at your own discretion.

We parked a few meters away from the warehouse, but you could still hear gunfire.  
"Everyone, listen up! We go in there, and kill them all. No holding back. It is your utmost responsibility to keep Sigma safe. Under no circumstance do you stop firing, unless me or Ryo command otherwise. Do you understand?"  
"Yes ma'am!"  
"Good. Now go." The troops went down to the warehouse with the three of us at the rear.  
"Listen, Sigma. You're experiencing a real mission for the first time much earlier than I intended to. Do your best and be careful. If you ever feel worn out you can step out, the troops are protecting you. And never, and I mean never, be reckless." They nodded in confirmation and we kept running. I prepared my handguns as we neared the warehouse. 

We busted into the ongoing gunfight. Our opponents looked all too familiar. They were all wearing white. What the fuck. Why? This makes no sense. The three of us split up and began shooting the people in white. They were outnumbered, so it didn't take too long to lower their numbers. I finished shooting a group to the side, when I turned around and saw...Dylan. The same man I saw hanging from a ceiling just a few weeks ago. I could still kind-of see the scars around his neck. How is he alive? Why is he doing this now? He was in the gunfight too, and was aiming at...

"RYOOO!!!!!" 

As he turned his head towards me, he was shot in the chest, above the heart. I dropped everything and came running to him. The troops surrounded us so we couldn't get hurt. I held Ryo in my arms as his shirt soaked more and more blood. I ripped a part of my jumpsuit in attempt to bandage his wound. It hardly did anything.   
"Ryo, Ryo please say something.."  
"Lilith....stay safe. I love you more than anything." He had a smile on his face. How can this bastard smile right now?   
He closed his eyes, and I felt him go limp in my arms. I screamed out. Tears were flooding out of my eyes. And then, out of no where, the switch flipped. I laid Ryo gently on the ground.   
"One man left!" I heard a man yell out.  
"Cease the fire!" The gunfire slowly died down, and all that was left was silence. I got up and pushed the guards aside.  
"Let me handle this." 

I slowly walked towards Dylan, who had a gun pointed straight at me.   
"It's pointless, Lilith. You'll die."  
"Then kill me. Let me feel what it was like for all of my 15678 victims. What's it like being murdered in cold blood."   
I came so close that the gun was scratching my forehead. It bled a little bit.   
"Do it. Pull the fucking trigger. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it..."  
I saw his hands shake slightly. 

I slapped the gun out of his hand and knocked him down to the ground. I bashed his head against the concrete until we both sat in his blood. I punched his jaw repeatedly, taking a few of his teeth out. I then stabbed him with the knife around my waist. I mostly stabbed at the same place where Ryo was shot. When I saw he was at the brink of death, I got up and got the gun from the floor. I shoved it in his mouth and pulled the trigger. I left him like that and went back to Ryo.

Slowly, I regained my senses and came back to normal. No one said a word. The car ride to the hospital was dead silent. When we arrived to the hospital, they immediately took him in for surgery. A nurse told me that he was in very critical condition. He lost a lot of blood, but they'll do whatever they can.

I sat in the waiting room. I was still disheveled, with blood of different people still on me. I stared at my bloody hands and slowly spaced out. What is wrong with me? Why am I like this... Why me? I never asked for this. I never asked for my parents to be killed. I never asked to have this curse they called a gift. I don't want it. I never wanted it. I grabbed onto my hair and just...cried. I sat there, in the hospital waiting room, crying. I cried for a good 20 minutes before going to a patient bathroom to take a shower. I asked some nurses for clothes.   
h  
Its been three hours since the surgery started. I haven't moved from this seat.   
"Excuse me, miss?"  
I snapped back into reality. I jumped from the chair, startling the nurse.  
"I'm sorry to tell you, but we don't have enough blood to continue the s-"  
"I'll donate! I'll find people who can donate, just please, help him." The nurse hesitated before leading me into a different room.  
"What's your blood type?"  
"I-I'm not sure.."  
"That's fine. We'll determine with a quick test." She pricked my finger and took a sample of my blood. Not even two minutes later, she came back.  
"Thankfully, you're blood type is eligible. But, we will need a lot of it."  
"I don't care, take how much you want. Just keep him alive." The nurse prepared me for the blood extraction. They took quite a few bags, and I was beginning to feel dizzy.  
"This is it for now. We might need more, so be prepared." I nodded. Why am I this dizzy? I've lost more blood before...

I fell into a light sleep at the same chair as before. I don't know for how long I was sleeping, but sound of footsteps echoing woke me up. I jerked my head up and saw the nurse from before coming towards me. My heart was pounding. I felt sweat drip down my forehead. My breathing got heavier and I started shaking.   
"The surgery was successful." I was at ease immediately. I let out a sigh of relief.  
"But he is still unconscious and his condition is critical, but stable."   
"He'll get through it. I know he will."  
"He is in room 56." She said before leaving me in the hallway. I rushed down to room 56. I opened the door and saw Ryo laying in the dark. There were all kinds of tubes connecting his body to various machines. I sat next to him in silence. 

The beeping of the machines was driving me insane. The room was dead silent apart from the faint beeping and buzzing of various machines. It was well past midnight by now.   
I was still in his room, watching his chest slowly rise up, and fall down again. It was slow and shallow, but it was reassuring. 

[...]

"You know, Ryo... I've always loved you. Since I saw you that day at the bar 'till now, I loved you. I loved you when I said I didn't. I loved you when we said horrible things to each other. I loved you when you were working with and against me. I loved you when you worshiped and loathed me. I loved you when I'd have cute and awful thoughts about you. I loved you when you pointed a gun to my face and when you caressed it. I loved you when you hit me and when I hit you back. I loved you at every single pint since we met. And I still love you Ryo. And I will continue to love. It's painful, it's torture, and it's scary. But I love it all. I know you can't hear me, but I'll tell you how many times I need. I love you."  
I heard soft sobbing in the silence. I looked up at Ryo, who had tears streaming down his porcelain face, and a sad smile on his face. I jumped up, tears forming at the end of my eyes.  
I bent over Ryo, wiping his tears. I smiled at him.   
"You can go now, Zeta." It hurt in a bittersweet way.  
"Why use my given name now?"  
"I felt like it."   
"You gave me this name. Why not use it?"  
"I felt like it."  
"You're such an idiot." The two of us chuckled softly.   
"I'll go tell a nurse you're awake."  
"No..stay here for a second." I sat next to him again.  
"So what happened after I went unconscious?"  
"I don't remember..."  
"Don't lie to me." Fuck. He could always tell when I lie.  
"I killed Dylan."  
"Did you..?"  
"Yeah.." We sat in silence for a few seconds. He slowly raised his hand to mine, gripping it gently.   
"It's fine. You did what you had to. Go get the nurse now." He had a bittersweet smile plastered on his face.  
I slowly got up and left his room.

[A FEW DAYS LATER]  
"Boss, you have a visitor."  
"Let them in!"  
When I saw Ryo enter my office I immediately jumped from my chair and ran over to him. I gave him a tight hug. He grunted upon the impact, but quickly returned the hug. He felt more fragile than before.  
"What did the doctor say?"  
"They said I'm improving at an incredible rate and that I'll be able to make a full recovery in a week or so!"  
"That's great, Ryo!"  
He looked me in the eyes before leaning in for a soft kiss.   
"What was that for?"  
"What? I cant kiss my girlfriend because I want to?"  
"Girlfriend..."  
"Wait, shit, I-"  
"It's fine. I kinda like it."  
"Anyway, the real reason I kissed you was because of what you said at the hospital."  
"Oh...you can just forget about that."  
"Never. Because I feel the same. The truth is, I cant exist without you. You're my second half. My soulmate. So that's why I'm asking you, Zeta Noemi Belasco, to marry me." He got on one knee and pulled out a small box.


	17. Proposal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The question has finally been asked.

[...]

"...That's why I'm asking you, Zeta Noemi Bellasco, to marry me." He got on one knee and pulled out a small box from his pocket. The ring was beautiful.

I got down to eye level, closed the box and hugged him.  
"Ryo. I don't want any titles. I like how we are now. I like just being Ryo and Li...Zeta." I slid the ring onto my finger. "I'll use this ring as a promise to always stay by your side. Your side and your side only." I pulled away from the hug and swiped the tear on his cheek. I kissed him gently. "Come on, let's get you a matching ring." We left my office and went into the city. We bought another ring and he vowed to always stay by my side. "How about I take you out for lunch?" This question caught me off guard. In the five years of knowing each other, we never went on a proper date. Yes we've been to our pub, but we never considered it a date. "Sure. But we should probably dress the part." He dropped me at my apartment before driving off to his on. I know exactly what I'm gonna wear. I took out a dress I've been keeping for a special occasion. It still had clear wrap on it. It was a long sleeve black dress with a deep cut. It was long and had a high vertical cut on the leg. It perfectly accentuated my shoulders and waist. I put on a thin silver belt and some black heels. As I was looking trough my jewelry, I found a silver necklace and earring set that Ryo gave me a few years ago. I can't believe I never wore it. I added some finishing touches and went out to meet Ryo. 

It was already getting dark out, so lunch turned into dinner. Ryo previously texted me he was waiting outside. When he saw me, his jaw was on the floor. I couldn't help but smile. He looked good too. He wore his signature suit. It made him look both professional and sexy. As I came closer towards him, I noticed he was staring at my neck.  
"Is that the necklace I gave you?"  
"Yes!" He picked me up and spun me in a circle. He had the biggest smile on his face. When he put me down he gave me the sweetest kiss.  
"You have no idea how much this means to me." He took my hand into his and led me into his car.   
"Also, you look really good tonight." We drove off.

The restaurant he drove me too was one of the fanciest in the city. It was always busy and for a good reason. Everyone who's ever been there loved the food and had an overall great experience. I was happy my first time here is with Ryo.  
Hand in hand, we walked inside.

"Good evening! How may I help you?" The petite hostess asked with the sweetest voice.  
"We need a table for two."  
"Okay, do you have a reservation?"  
Me and Ryo looked at each other before laughing. The hostess looked puzzled.  
"Are you new here?"  
"Excuse me?"  
"To the town I mean. Have you recently moved here?"  
"Uh...yes. Yes I have."  
"Rookie mistake. Call over your boss for me please."  
"Of course, ma'am."  
Ryo and I were left alone in the hallway. We burst out laughing.   
"My god I love newbies."  
We waited in the hallway for a little while before we heard voices from down the hallway.  
"...a woman with white hair? Are you sure you're not mistaken?" I heard a familiar female voice. When she rounded the corner, she had the funniest expression.  
"No way." She came over to me. "Miss Phantom at my restaurant. Who would've thought." She gave me a hug. But she knew me all to well. She pulled out the hunting knife I held around my thigh and placed it against my throat. The hostess was pale, while the rest of us were unfazed.\  
"Still paranoid, are we? I can't blame you though"  
"Just protective measures." She gave me back my knife and I placed it back around my thigh.  
"So how can I help you two tonight?"  
"We need a table for two."  
"Of course. How can I reject the young queen and her king? Right this way." She led us towards a table with a view of the city skyline. We ordered drinks and were left to wait. I stared out at the view. It was giving me a nostalgic feeling.   
"You know...I really do love this city. Even though it has been nothing but cruel to me. I met you in this city, and I found myself in this city. No matter how much it hates me, I'd still die for it. Because it is where I belong.  
"Zeta. You don't need this city to be you. You only need yourself. Don't go around being reckless."  
"I know, I know. But I can't help but think that I owe this city."   
Our waiter brought us the drinks and soon after the food.

It was godly. I never imagined such good food existed.   
"Ryo?"  
"Yes?"  
"Would you die for me?" He almost choked on his food.  
"What kind of question is that? Of course I would."  
"Would you live for me?"  
"I already do you idiot. What prompted these questions?"  
"I don't know..."  
He grabbed my hands.  
"Whats going on?"  
"I have the weirdest feeling. I don't know what it is."  
"Do you want to go home?" I slowly nodded my head. Ryo paid and we left. I almost fell asleep in the car. I noticed Ryo looking at me worriedly. He parked outside f my apartment and carried me inside. He placed me on my bed and gave me some clothes to change into.   
"I'm sorry."  
"For what?"  
"Ruining our night."  
"Don't be ridiculous. I love every moment i spend with you. Didn't I already tell you that?"  
I nodded slowly.  
"Come here." we curled up together on my bed. His warmth made me feel at ease. The rhythmic beating of his heart was hypnotizing, I almost fell asleep. Almost. The annoying sound of my phone ringing made me jerk awake.  
"Who is it at this hour?" I picked up.  
"Boss? Oh thank god. Come over asap, Sigma is going rampant."


	18. Sigma

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This situation is all too familiar.

My eyes widened as realization settled in. My heart began to ache. I knew exactly what was going on.   
"Ryo, we have to go."  
"What's wrong?" I got up and began getting ready to leave.  
"Remember what used to happen after I quit being the Phantom? I think the same thing is happening to Sigma. I told you about the camp report. They clearly doesn't have control over it. Just like I didn't. I still barely understand it. That's why we have to help them." Ryo got up as well. We quickly left my apartment. We arrived at the building pretty fast, and as soon as we came in, we heard shouting. As we climbed up, more and more people stood to the side with concerned looks on their faces.  
"Boss! Thank god you're here! Sigma is over there." He lead me down the hallway where Sigma was straddling someone and repeatedly punching them.  
"Shit. Ryo, you restrain them, I'll do the rest." He nodded his head and we ran over to the scene. Ryo held Sigma's hands so that they weren't harming the person. I grabbed their forearm and focused hard.   
"Rest, Sigma." The red glint in their eyes faded and they dropped onto my chest. They were asleep, clearly unaware of the situation. I patted their head.  
"You poor thing."   
The guy that was under Sigma scrambled up and stood a safe distance away.  
"T-that monster!" I stopped listening to his ramblings after that sentence.  
"Shut up." The whole hallway was silent. "How can you say that to a child? They can't control it. It's a fucking curse to live with this. I don't want to hear another word from your mouth."  
"B-But..!" I let Ryo hold Sigma while I stood up. I came up to the man and was right up in his face.  
"Was I not clear?" He shivered. "I said I don't want to hear it. You may be the victim in this situation, but in the long run, Sigma is the victim. They're the one who will continue to suffer from this. Not you. Also, I'll look into how this all started. You may as well be at fault here too."  
"But, Boss, how can you protect him!" I punched the guy with all my might. He flew across the hallway and slammed into a wall.  
"Are you deaf or just fucking stupid?! Engrave my words into your brain. I will not repeat what I said. Also, Sigma uses they/them pronouns. Respect them. Get out of my sight, you disgusting piece of shit." 

The whole hallway was silent. I walked back to where Ryo was holding Sigma. I picked them up and the three of us went to my office. I laid Sigma on the small couch in my office an covered them with my coat. I looked at them with pity. I knew exactly what it felt like. What it felt for it to drain all of your energy. To torture you to no end. I sighed.  
Ryo wrapped his arms from behind me. He rested his head on my shoulder.   
"I'm sorry."  
"Don't apologize. It's not your fault. It's mine. I didn't keep a closer eye on him. Also, what was he doing at the office this late?"  
"It's not your fault. It's whoever provoked him."  
"You're right. I'll look into that. You watch Sigma for me. Please." He saw the pleading look in my eyes.  
"Of course, Zeta." He hugged me tighter.

I went back down to the scene of the fight and saw some people helping that scum.  
"Didn't I tell you to not cross me again? Leave this building this instant. Don't make me kick you out." He scurried on his feet and ran out. Fucking pussy. The people watching the scene were still in the hallway.  
"What are all of you waiting for? Why did none of you at least try to intervene?" Silence. "What? No ones gonna say anything?" "B-because he made it impossible to intervene." Right. Of course. It's not that simple. "Okay. Does anyone here know exactly what happened before Sigma attacked that scumbag?" I few people raised their hands. "Okay, you few come with me. If anyone has other information, don't hesitate to tell me or Ryo. Everyone else is free to leave." People slowly started dispersing. I told Ryo to move Sigma into the room behind the office. The four people who raised their hands were seated at my office.

"Okay, who goes first? Don't worry, as long as you're completely honest you will go unharmed." The guy who called me started speaking.  
"Well...Sigma stayed overtime to train. I told them they had to leave the training grounds since they were closing soon. They were a little bummed out, but nothing serious. I followed them back up to your office, or at least I wanted to. The guy they were beating up was walking past us in the hallway. He said: -I haven't seen you around before, you must be new!-. It all started normally, but the guy kept misgendering Sigma. He started to pick on them, at one point calling him a freak. I think that was the tipping point. I saw them loose all expression in their face, and get this red glint in their eyes. They looked terrifying. They grabbed onto the guy's neck and lifted him up in the air. I tried to stop them, but they forcefully pushed me away. I called for help and that's when these three came out. All four of us tried to restrain them to no avail. As the fight escalated, more and more people came out to the hallway. All attempts were futile, so I called you. That's about it."  
"Do you three have anything to add or dispute?" They shook their heads.  
"Okay, thank you. I'll write your bonus checks tomorrow. You're free to leave. The four of them got up and left my office.

I slumped back into my chair with a sigh. I can't believe I let this happen. I knew the risks. I knew everything. Yet I ignored it. I'm not fit to be a mentor. A click behind me made me jolt upwards. I looked behind me and saw Sigma open the back door. They looked completely worn out. I got up and walked over to them. They hugged me with desperation. I felt their tears soak into my shirt.  
"I'm sorry.." My heart ached like never before.  
"It's not your fault, kid." We sat down onto the small couch.

"I'm gonna tell you something, so please listen carefully." They nodded their head. "So...this 'thing' you have, I have it too. I don't know too much about it, but all I know is that it's triggered by provocation and mass amounts of anger. It can only be stopped by someone close to you holding your forearm and telling you to rest. If another person wore to try and stop it, it would feel like an intense burning sensation. As you learn to control it, you become more resistant to activating it, but not immune. The process to learn to control it is very painful and tiring. It is done by someone provocating you and you trying to repress 'it'. Someone keeps stopping it and you keep switching until you last just a second longer. It took me years to be where I am today."  
"How did you deal with it before you learned to withstand it?"  
"I didn't. I let it control me. As you might know, I was an assassin for 4 or 5 years. This thing was very useful at missions. I let it run over me and I let it ward off by itself. It'd sometimes take hours for it to ward off. It caused a lot of accidents of course. Sometimes, they'd, um- they'd keep me restrained until it warded off. It was living hell. That's why I want to help you learn and restrain it as soon as possible. We'll try less painful ways, but I can't guarantee anything. We stop and start whenever you want. I don't want you to be traumatized by it like I was. So please, if you have any questions or need any help, call me. Don't be scared, I'm your friend." They hugged me again. It felt so innocent. 

"But there are some good things about it. Not a lot but, still something. I managed to learn to turn it on on command, so I can use it in dangerous situations. It is very useful if you have to fend yourself from a stronger opponent, since it increases your senses, stamina, speed and overall strength. You are more or less invincible, but you're kinda unconscious while your doing it. Your brain focuses on your opponent solely, and will get rid of anyone standing in your way. No matter who it is. So never be reckless when using it. Promise me."  
"I promise."  
"Good...I also promised myself I'll never use it again and here we are now, so don't beat yourself about it. You should go home now."

They looked sad.  
"Do you not want to go home?" They shook their head.   
"Why not?"  
"It's lonely and scary."  
"How about you stay at my place for some time?"  
"Can I?"  
"Of course. Pack what you need. The two of us are gonna help you settle in."  
"Two of us?" I heard Ryo behind me.   
"What, do you not want to move in too?"


	19. Move In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The three of you moving in together, like a small family.

We spent the whole day settling in.

Sigma claimed the vacant guestroom for themselves, while Ryo and I shared my room. It was big enough for all of us. And, truthfully, it felt good to be together. While the two of them were moving their stuff in, I was cleaning and going trough some of my old stuff. I found clothes from camp, some old drawings and photos and all kinds of medals and diplomas from camp. They were all those childish competition ones. I don't know why I didn't throw them away. I kept looking and found a photo of my parents. 

I stared at it in disbelief. I was clutching it in my hand hard enough to rip it. I felt myself loose it. My vision became gray and blurry. I was shaking. I had nothing but resentment for my mother and father. They never liked me, and I never liked them. They cruelly left me all alone at just 4 years old. I wasn't exactly sad at them leaving, I was more angry. Angry that they never treated me like their own. The only thing they gave me is my name. I single tear rolled down my cheek.

"It's your fault..." I heard my father.  
"You killed us. It was all you!"  
"No....." I backed myself against the wall. But they wouldn't stop.   
"You freak."  
"We never wanted you."  
"You are a mistake."  
"Please...stop."  
"It's the truth, Zeta. We never loved you. You have no idea what relief washed upon us when we left this world."  
"Ironically, it was you who freed us. So barbaric."  
"A monster." I couldn't take it anymore.

I grabbed onto my moms neck and pinned her against the floor. I clenched her neck while she was scratching my hand. I punched her repeatedly.  
"You're the monster here!"  
"Zeta!" I felt a strong grip on my forearm. I was yanked away and fell to the floor.  
That's when I realized what was going on.

I blinked a few times before I regained full consciousness. I saw Ryo bending over Sigma who was laying on the ground. I crawled towards them, still weak from the throw. Ryo stopped me from coming closer to them.  
"I wont let you hurt them."  
"W-what..?"  
That's when I saw the state Sigma was in. I was screaming uncontrollably. I dragged myself away. I can't believe what I've done to a child. They were all bloody and their neck was full of bruises. I couldn't stop crying and shaking. I was scared of myself. I really am a monster. 

I saw the look on Ryo's face. He looked so hurt. I felt even worse. I was so sure I was in control of 'it'. I hugged my knees and continued sobbing. I just couldn't wrap my head around what I just did. I saw Ryo pick up Sigma and leave the room. A few minutes later I heard the door to the apartment open and close. I was alone. I went back up to that picture. I grabbed a lighter and burned it until it was just ash on my carpet. I collapsed on the floor, numb. I only felt immense pain in my chest. Guilt was eating me alive. I couldn't cry, yell, anything. I could only worry about Sigma's well being. I picked myself up and went to light a cigarette. 

It was chilly outside, that same cold that reminded you of how alone you are. I smoked a few before coming back inside. I cleaned myself up and made myself look presentable before leaving the apartment. I brought a pack of cigarettes with me as well. I drove to the hospital by myself. The nurse inside brought me to Sigma's room. Outside, I saw Ryo on one of the waiting chairs rubbing his temples. When he saw me he got up and physically didn't allow me to go inside their room.  
"You can leave now." He said to the nurse. She scurried away and he turned his attention back onto me.

"Let me see them."  
"No. I'm not gonna let you hurt a child again."  
"They're my subordinate."  
"And you're my lover. Your actions directly affect me and people closest to you. Stop being selfish and think about that for once."  
"I'm sorry...When I attacked Sigma I didn't see them. I was hallucinating."  
"That's not an excuse. Stop victimizing yourself and own up to your actions for once. I'm done looking through your fingers every time. I don't want to clean after you anymore. I'm tired of you and your bullshit, Zeta. I know it's hard but I need you to realize that you're not the only one suffering."  
"I get it. I'm sorry."  
"Stop fucking apologizing." He grabbed my forearms. "Own up to it. It's no ones fault but your own."  
He's right. All I've ever done is feel sorry for myself. I never dealt with my trauma accordingly. And that is my fault and my fault only. I need to stop projecting my problems onto other people. I'm hurting the people around me. I need to make it stop.   
"Hey! Are you listening to me." He shook me. That's when the pack of cigarettes dropped on the floor. He started at them.  
"You've got to be fucking kidding me." I let me go. He started laughing. That scary kind. "Just go. Leave. I don't want to look at you right now." 

It felt like my heart was being ripped out. But it's the punishment I deserve. I've hurt so many people, I need to stop getting my way.  
"Fine. I'll leave. I wont be an eyesore for you anymore." I left the hospital and sat in my car.   
I knew exactly where I was gonna go.

I drove to my office and walked to the Agent Deployment Sector. A place where assassins, spies and agents of the sort can apply to work abroad. I was ready to do anything for this opportunity. Even if it meant dropping my current position.  
"Boss! What brings you in today?"  
"I want to apply for working abroad. Anything works." The clerk looked puzzled.   
"Are you sure you want to do this? Juggling this and the abroad program may be hard."  
"I'm ready to drop this position." The clerk almost choked.   
"Who would take your position?"  
"Sigma. I'll prepare everything if needed."  
"Okay...I'll need you to fill this. Afterwards, we sent it over for approval and we'll call you back."  
He gave me a piece of paper that looked like a wavier of some sort. Like: Sign your life off here! I filled in the basic information before I got to the position check. I was given: assassin, intelligence agent, internal spy and group force member. I checked assassin. I was gonna perform the best in that field anyway. I signed whatever else was on the paper and went back home.

I packed clothes, cash, hygiene products etc. I left a note to Sigma and Ryo: "Use this apartment to your heart's extent. Any info you might need is written underneath. I'll be leaving for a long time so I won't hurt you anymore. Sigma might be getting an important call in the next few days, so look out for that. Stay safe and I love you. -Zeta" I placed it on the kitchen counter and left the apartment. I went back to the office. I settled in the backroom.  
"It'll have to do."  
As I was tidying up, my phone ringing startled me.

"Hello, Boss? You got the position. You'll have to abandon your position as leader. The plane is taking off tonight at midnight."


	20. Is this it?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zeta is finally going back to her roots. This is goodbye to life she knew up until now.

Midnight? Perfect. I have four hours left, which is enough time to prepare everything. I called Jessica.  
"Hey, Jess. I need you to do a big favor for me."  
"Sure."  
"Okay, effective tomorrow, I am no longer in charge." I heard her almost choke on something on the other side. "Sigma will take my place. Make sure they get appropriate education, tutoring or any kind of help they might need. Any disrespect towards them, especially misgendering, is strictly prohibited and punishable accordingly. If it comes to it, I'll handle the punishment. Make sure they have bodyguards with them at all times. Their highest priority is to protect Sigma. Any violation of this is punishable by death. No change of authority is allowed without my authorization. If I ever come back, I'm in charge again. Also, if anything happens to Sigma, call Ryo before calling me. Call both them and Ryo and notify them of this. At 8 AM tomorrow, make an official announcement of authority change."  
"...Anything else?"  
"That's it for now. I'll call you if anything happens."  
"Okay, it will be done as you say."  
"Thank you." She hung up. I'm surprised she didn't ask any questions. I'm glad she didn't though. 

I continued preparing for my flight. I put on some comfy clothing and packed the essentials in my bag. I packed my two handguns and hunting knife. My suit was also in there. I can't believe I was actually going back to the Phantom. It kind of feels like I'm going home....   
The same day I quit was the day I met Ryo. That's one of the biggest reasons why I'm so attached to him. I believed for the longest time that he was sent by the gods. I was dead wrong. It still sometimes felt like that. It was foolish of me to believe such nonsense. I person like me won't get anything from the gods but the divine punishment. And everything that's ever happened to me is a part of that punishment. And it will continue till the day I drop dead. Lost amidst the documents in the Boss' office. All for nothing at all.

I snapped back into reality and checked the time. Half past ten. I have to go soon. I put on the jewelry Ryo gave me and left the backroom. By the time I packed everything in the car it was already almost eleven. The red light reflected trough the windshield onto my pale face. I stared at the plane ticket resting on the passenger seat. Is this really it? I spent the whole drive lost in my thoughts. I arrived to the airport in no time. It felt unreal.

The airport was mostly empty, so I sat in one of those chairs and waited for my flight. I checked my phone and saw numerous missed calls from Ryo. I'm sorry. Soon I'll have to trow this phone away. I emptily stared at it. It felt bittersweet. I was doing something I hated for someone I love. It's worth it though. If that's one less person I'll hurt, it's worth it. It's hypocritical. How I'm going away to hurt more people so I won't hurt one. How selfish of me.  
I was startled by the staff calling my flight. I took the glove off of my right hand and went up to the gate. She saw the mark on the back of my hand and let me trough without questions. Same thing with the metal detector guy. I couldn't afford making a scene right now.

As I went trough, a terrifying scream scared me.  
"ZETAA!!!" I stopped in my tracks.  
I turned around and saw Ryo running towards me with tears in his eyes. I never saw him like this. He went trough the gate which sounded the alarm. Right as he passed trough the metal detector, two alarms sounded at the same time. He hugged me so hard I almost felt down. He never held me like this before. Like I was withering away. I saw the armed guards run out. I also saw the few red dots on each others bodies. Ryo clearly didn't, so I raised my hand in the air, putting my mark on display. Slowly, they lowered their weapons.

"Why are you leaving? You promised you'd stay." He took my hand who still had the ring he gave me into his. "I'm still mad at you beyond words. But never ever leave me. It'll be irrepairable. It'd hurt much much much more." His tears soaked into my shirt. My heart felt like it was being ripped out. I was torn. The final announcement for my flight didn't help either.   
"Please, Zeta, don't do this to me. To us."  
"I'm sorry, Ryo. I don't want to hurt you anymore."  
I heard a click and felt a gun against my chest.  
"Like the good old days..." I got the gun from my luggage and pointed it at his heart. Both of the triggers we're held tight. He held me close. We pulled the trigger at the same time.  
[...]

[...]

[...]  
Both guns were empty. We both burst out laughing.   
"It really is like the good old days." He kissed me.  
I watched as the clock switched to 00:00 and my flight disappeared from the screen. A small smile carved at the end of my lips. It's better this way. It's always meant to be this way. The two of us, suffering together. As we stood up, the red dot reappeared.  
"Didn't you see my hand?" I raised it again.  
"Yes I did. But you've caused too much trouble for us tonight." One of the guards said. The two of us laughed.  
"You act as if we're not directly above you." I took some of the bullets from Ryo's pocket and loaded my handguns. "Save some for me!" He whispered. We switched sides and the gunfire started. 

I jumped up towards the guards and with crossed arms shot all of them.   
"I said I'm above you."  
As the gunfight progressed, Ryo and I found each other back to back again. We both had a swarm of guards on each side.  
"You know what to do."   
I jumped over his head and pushed myself off his shoulder. This gave me the time frame to shoot the remaining guards. A few seconds after it was complete silence. I only heard Ryo's and my own breathing.   
I turned back to him, and the two of us laughed before embracing. He kissed me again, his lips soft like a feather.   
"Let's go home."   
The two of us walked out of the airport.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THE END.
> 
> Thank you for reading this roller coaster of a story. I apologize again if it's not too good, since it still is my first one.
> 
> [AFTERMATH]
> 
> After Ryo and Zeta left the airport, they went back home where Sigma was waiting. They weren't mad at Zeta, since they knew what it felt like.   
> Zeta called Jessica and told her to stop the authority change. Zeta and Sigma practiced their endurance together, and progressed wonderfully. Zeta is yet to fall under the influence of 'it' again. The three of them lived happily together for years. 
> 
> Zeta and Ryo died fighting together. At the brink of death, they committed a double-suicide. They died at the age of 30, leaving Sigma to lead the Demigods. They died while holding each other, under a rain of bullets. Their death was inevitable, due to their devotion to each groups and each other, and because of Zeta's vow to never use 'it' again. Their death was honorable and was remembered as one of the most heroic acts in each groups' history.
> 
> Zeta was remembered as the best leader in the history of the Demigods.


End file.
